To our catalog of available CDs

Print an order form

Check out now

Get help!


 

Between the Lakes Group LLC

OUR CATALOG
Search tools
Free research tools
Print an order form
We're working on ....
Join our mailing list
Questions & answers
Contacting us
Home Page

 

 

Lime Rock, CT history

Lime Rock

Lime Rock: the historic iron hamlet in Salisbury Township, Litchfield County, Connecticut

Why are we interested in Lime Rock?   We're currently the Historian of Trinity Church in Lime Rock.  We're active in the Friends of Beckley Furnace, a historical preservation group that is interested in the Barnum and Richardson Company, once headquartered in Lime Rock.  And, we ran a heritage walk in Lime Rock a few years ago for the UHVNHA.

  • What unusual opportunity did Lime Rock present? 

Lime Rock: the opportunity for the answer!

  • But why Lime Rock?  Why do a heritage walk of Lime Rock anyway?  What's so special about Lime Rock?

Lime Rock is special for the answer!

  • People make history.  What about famous people in Lime Rock?

Lime Rock people make history for the answer!

From the collections of Between the Lakes Group:

We've photographed quite a few of the gravestones in the Lime Rock Cemetery.  Lime Rock Cemetery -- gravestones to view photos of some of them.  We're planning to photograph more and make them available here.  Let us know if you are interested in a particular family or surname, and we'll see if we can find it!  There are some of the same and many different gravestones pictured on the CD-ROM, too.

We're happy to provide for your reading pleasure an article from 1905 about Lime Rock and its history that was written by the then-Rector of Trinity Church.  It's well worth reading and contains insights about the community that we've not seen elsewhere.

Gesner article about Lime Rock's history (1905) to read the 1905 Gesner article about Lime Rock

 

...about our Lime Rock History Walk CD-ROM...

Usually we create a CD-ROM in order to re-publish a major book of local history, genealogy, or Americana. 

We've broken with tradition on this one.  Although we are including one  local history pamphlet on this CD, it's only a small part of the CD.  This time we decided to take advantage of an opportunity and publish something a little different for Lime Rock.

Just as we were delighted to support the Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area (UHVNHA) by leading a heritage walk, we were fortunate to gain the sponsorship of Trinity Church in Lime Rock for the walk itself.  They generously gave us free run of their spectacular (for a small-town parish church) facilities.  And, we were extremely happy to gain the active support of Lime Rock Park. That world-famous Lime Rock institution even provided a speaker, Ev Gamble, a track historian whose background goes back to the track's very beginnings. 

Here's what the official brochure about the 48 separate walks UHVNHA sponsored that weekend said about our walk:

Over the centuries, Lime Rock has achieved more name recognition on a national level than any other Northwest Corner village, and for many good reasons.  This walk will highlight some of them.  Lime Rock was the headquarters and company town of Barnum Richardson Co., the preeminent manufacturer of railroad wheels, and the home of US Senator and Chairman of the Democratic National Committee William H. Barnum, at that time the wealthiest man in northwestern Connecticut.  Walk participants will view sites of the "Golden Rod Cycle Track, " Lime Rock Cemetery, Lime Rock Park, the Lime Rock Casino, stores and hotel, among many others.

To accommodate those who were not physically ready for the hike itself, we also held two indoor activities that day. 

  • A showing of "Lime Rock Park: The Secret Valley of Racing" (this PBS video was nominated for 3 EMMY awards!). 
  • An hour-long slide show of Lime Rock history that we created. The slide show covers the same material the walk did, but it also includes much additional information and many additional sights. 

By popular demand, the showings of both the video and the slide show were repeated after the walkers returned from their trek.  

We decided not to limit the CD to just the Lime Rock history walk slide show.  We supplemented the 130-slide slide show with:

  • A scanned 1949 History of Trinity Church, Lime Rock (we also indexed this -- you'll find the names that appear in that pamphlet further down this page).  (If you're interested in historic Litchfield County churches, be sure to also consider our republication of Clergy of Litchfield County (1909).
  • Selected references for further study and exploration of historic Lime Rock.

  • A separate section of old photographs and maps. (Many of these also appear in the slideshow, but we are sure that many people will be interested in looking more closely at these than the slide show format permits.) 

How to order the Lime Rock CD-ROM

The price of the CD is $15.00. 

How to order the Lime Rock CD-ROM to find out how to order the Lime Rock CD.

 

We've also set up an e-mail discussion group about the history of Lime Rock.  It's easy to join.  Just send an e-mail to limerock-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.  It's free, and it's open to discussion of any aspect of the history of Lime Rock.

More about Historic Lime Rock:

Here's a recent brochure we produced for Trinity Church in Lime Rock --

it's a self-guided tour of that historic church with a distinctly historical perspective.  Self-guided tour of Trinity Episcopal Church, Lime Rock to view it on Trinity Lime Rock's website. But don't forget to come back!

 

Here's one of our favorite views of Lime Rock, circa 1908:

Here's a super view of Lime Rock, taken from what must have been an cleared overlook above the Barnum and Richardson houses at the foot of what is now White Hollow Road (but then was Barnum Avenue).  That peak is fully forested today, and we doubt a clear view could be found.  Furthermore, the tree growth in Lime Rock itself would make most of the landmarks here invisible in today's photo. 

Lime Rock 1910

You can see where Lime Rock Park now is (the right hand portion of the picture, opposite Trinity Church), the meanders of the Salmon Kill (lower right corner), several of the company houses (note especially the cluster in the center of the photo), Charles Barnum's splendid "Hepzivalla" (to the left of center of the photo), but, unfortunately, nothing of downtown Lime Rock or the Barnum Richardson factory buildings (all out of the photo at the bottom). Lime Rock Park, of course would be on the right hand edge of the picture.

More pictures on the Lime Rock CD-ROM

 

More about the Lime Rock CD-ROM:

You may be wondering if a particular name you're looking for appears in the brief  History of Trinity Church we included on the CD.  We have indexed both names and places for this republication, and the new index is also on the CD. 

How to order the Lime Rock CD-ROM

Below is an extract of names from that index so you can check before buying to see if a particular name you're interested in is included:

Arnold, H.

Athoe, Newman

Averill, Dr.

Barnum family

Barnum & Richardson Company

Barnum, C. W.

Barnum, Charles W.

Barnum, J. H.

Barnum, James H.

Barnum, Mrs.

Barnum, W. H., Mrs.

Barnum, William H.

Barnum, William H., Mrs.

Barrett, William

Beach family

Bigelow, Frank H., Rev.

Bigelow, Mr.

Brock, Sally

Bulman, Leonard

Burrell, Porter

Burrell, Porter, Mrs.

Carlsen, Dines

Carpenter, Mr.

Chiera, Mr.

Childs, George H

Cimino, Harry, Mrs.

Clark, A. S., Rev.

Crowell, William

Dean, Charles

Eggleston, Harry

Eggleston, Harry C.

Eggleston, Harry, Mrs.

Ensign, J. Lee

Ensign, James

Ensign, James, Mrs.

Ensign, Julia Ellen

Ensign, Julia Goodwin, 4

Ensign, Sidney P.

Gaylord, Henry C., Mrs.

Geissler of New York

Germon, Carl

Gesner, Herbert, Rev.

Gesner, Mr.

Gilbert, Helen

Goodwin, Hezekiah

Goodwin, Hezekiah E.

Goodwin, Hezekiah, Mrs.

Goodwin, Julia

Goodwin, Julia Emmons

Granger, Mrs.

Greene, Nathaniel, Mrs.

Griffin, Mr.

Griffith, George William, Rev.

Griffith, Mr.

Griffith, Mrs.

Guernsey, Lydia

Guernsey, Millard

Hallock, Josephine

Harwood, Lucy Richardson

Hurlbut, J. H.

Johnson, William A., Rev.

Kelley, John W., Mrs.

Levi, J. T.

Lewis, Pendleton

Lewis, Pendleton, Mrs.

Loverage, Harriet

Marshall, Herbert H.

McIntyre, Irving

McNeil, Mr.

McNeil, N. A.

McNeil, Nelson, Mrs.

Mortenson, Arthur

Mulligan, John

Mulligan, Mr.

Ostrum, Lee

Putnam, Mr.

Putnam, Richard F., Rev.

Richardson family

Richardson, Carrie

Richardson, James L.

Richardson, Leonard, Mrs.

Richardson, Lucy Ann

Richardson, Milo

Richardson, Milo B.

Richardson, Milo B., Sr.

Richardson, Milo, Mrs.

Rowley, C.. H.,

Rowley, Charles, Mrs.

Sanger, Edmund

Sanger, Edmund P.C.

Sedgwick, Harold B., Rev.

Simpson, Arthur

Stern, G. I.

Stevenson, Patricia

Strong, Henry B.

Strong, Henry B., Mrs.

Tarrant, Henry, Rev.

Tarrant, Mr.

Tarrant, Mrs.

Thorpe, George

Tomsett, Eric

Upjohn, "elder"

VanWyck, Mr.

VanWyck, Mrs.

VanWyck, William B., Rev.

VanWyck, William, Rev.

Walker family

Walker, Dr.

Walker, Milledge Pendril, Rev.

Walker, Mr.

Wanger, Anna

Wanger, F.

Wiesing, George

Wiesing, George, Mrs.

Williams, Bishop

Winterbottom, Robert

How to order the Lime Rock CD-ROM for ordering information for the Lime Rock: an Illustrated Walking Tour CD-ROM!   

Between the Lakes Group

  Search our website and our affiliates

  Search our website!

To our catalog of available CDs How to contact Between the Lakes Group Support at Between the Lakes Group
Check out now

Print an order form

Join our Mailing List!

We'll notify you when we issue new history, genealogy and Americana CDs

Between the Lakes Group publishes historical materials, largely local history, genealogy and Americana.  Our strengths are concentrated in New York State and Connecticut, but we have resources in other locations as well.  We sell our CD-ROMs to genealogists, historians, students (and teachers), librarians, archivists, and others with an interest in a particular subject, family, or locality.  On this website you'll find lots of free material, such as pictures, finding aids of various kinds, and links to other websites, as well as free searchable indexes of many of our CDs.  And, of course, you can order our CDs

Thanks for visiting us!  We're growing all the time, so bookmark us and come back and visit us again soon!

This website was last updated 05/07/2008

    © 1999-2008 Between the Lakes Group LLC