Summer Reading!
The events for the Summer Reading program have ended, but children can still bring in their reading logs to collect prizes through the end of August.
Bicentennial Talk with Warren Church
The History of Chaplin Place Names
Saturday, August 13th, 1:00 PM
Join Chaplin resident and local historian Warren Church to learn about place names in Chaplin. Why is it called Bear Hill Rd? Who was Diana of Diana’s Pool? Light refreshments will be served by the Friends of the Chaplin Public Library
Pollinators in Our Yards, presented by Pamela Cooper
Wednesday, August 17th, 1:00 PM
Senior Center
Join Pamela Cooper, UConn Home and Garden Educator, to learn about pollinator insects, with a focus on native bees and the plants that support them. Both native and non-native plants can be used in home landscapes for pollinators. Specific bees, their nesting sites, and other interesting facts will be covered. Many species of beetles, flies, and wasps are also effective pollinators and co-exist with native bees, sharing the same pollen and nectar sources.
Tea Time Book Chat
Friday, August 19th
3:00 pm -Under the Tent
What have you been reading this summer? Please join us to discuss your favorite summer reads. To register, please send an email to librarydirector@charter.net.
Cookbook Club: New England Foods
Monday, August 22nd
6:00 pm – Under the Tent
If you like to cook and share recipes, consider joining the library’s cookbook club. Every other month we choose a theme or chef, and prepare recipes to share. Since 2022 is Chaplin’s Bicentennial, this summer’s theme is New England Foods. Please email librarydirector@chaplinct.org to register.
Friends Group Meeting
Third Wednesday of the month- 2:30 pm
A Friends group is forming! If you are interested in helping the library, please attend a meeting. The next meeting will be on Wednesday, May 18th at 2:30 pm.
Chaplin Ukulele Band
Wednesdays at 4pm
If you play the ukulele or are interested in learning, consider joining the ukulele group. No experience required. No ukulele? Join in anyway. Please call or email for more information.
PROGRAM RECORDINGS
Bicentennial Talk: Ruth Snow Bowen, Chaplin Quilt Maker
Listed to the Recording of Catherine Smith’s talk!
Chaplin resident and artist Catherine Whall Smith shared the history of former Chaplin resident and artist Ruth Snow Bowen, who lived on Chaplin Street and sold many of her wonderful quilts throughout Connecticut. Each month the library is displaying small fiber art pieces of homes on Chaplin Street paired with a quilt from Catherine’s collection.
National Poetry Month: An Evening with Connecticut’s New Poet Laureates
Recording includes Adelaide Northrop
Listen to Connecticut’s newest poet laureates, including Chaplin Poet Laureate Adelaide Northrop.
Bicentennial Talk: History of the William Ross Library
Recording of Leslie Ricklin and Ingrid Wood’s talk
Chaplin resident Leslie Ricklin and Columbia Town Historian Ingrid Wood discussed the history of the William Ross Library.
Bicentennial Talk: Benjamin Chaplin’s Will
Recording of Gavin Horning-Kane and Brendan Kane’s talk
The 2nd Chaplin Bicentennial talk was a discussion of Benjamin Chaplin’s will. Chaplin residents Gavin Horning-Kane and UConn History Professor Brendan Kane explored the contents of our town benefactor’s will. Since it was written in 1790, the handwriting can be difficult to read. View the will for yourself, try your hand at transcribing a portion of it, and discover a bit about our town’s history.
Virtual Bicentennial Talk – Trouble in the Land of Steady Habits:
The Constitution of 1818
Recording of Walter Woodward’s Talk is available!
In celebration of Chaplin’s bicentennial, Connecticut State Historian Walter Woodward discussed what was happening in our state when Chaplin was taking steps to become a town. Connecticut in 1818 was in many ways eerily similar to Connecticut today: A troubled state, seeking a new direction. This lecture highlights the perfect storm of crises — environmental, economic, demographic, religious, and political — which converged in the middle of the eighteen-teens (1810s) to force the state to rethink the ways it had been conducting its affairs for the previous two centuries.