In 2016, Mystic Seaport celebrated the opening of the new Thompson Exhibition Building, a modern museum facility that makes extensive use of wood and features a dramatic roof that evokes an ocean wave. Designed by Centerbrook Architects and Planners, the building features a 5,000-square-foot exhibition gallery and visitor reception areas.
In 2002, the Whaler’s Inn in Mystic erected a building at the corner of East Main and Cottrell Streets, on the site of an earlier hotel, the Hoxie House, which opened in 1861. The Hoxie House, built by Benjamin F. Hoxie, had replaced an earlier commercial and lodging building, called the U. S. Hotel, erected by Nathaniel Clift in 1818. The U. S. Hotel building had burned down in 1858 and the old Hoxie House building burned down in 1975. The new Hoxie House reflects the Italianate style of the original Hoxie House, featuring a cupola and decorative brackets.
Happy New Year!! For New Year’s Day, here’s a relatively new “historic” building that’s become a modern Hartford landmark. The Connecticut Science Center, designed by César Pelli, was erected as part of the city’s Adriaen’s Landing development. The Science Center is nine stories, 154,000 square feet and is the first science center to generate most of its power from an on-site fuel cell. The Center opened its doors in 2009.
Saints Cyril & Methodius Russian Orthodox Church in Terryville in the town of Plymouth was established in 1908. The parish was formed after a split among the Rusyn/Lemko membership of the St. Michael Brotherhood of Terryville between Greek Catholic and Russian Orthodox factions. The Greek Catholics built St. Michael’s Church in 1910, while the Russian Orthodox built Saints Cyril & Methodius Church on the corner of Fairview and Ames Avenues in 1912. This original church, later enlarged, was replaced by by the current building circa 1979.
Wheeler’s Island is one of the Thimble Islands, which are located in and around the harbor of Stony Creek in the southeast corner of Branford. Vacation homes, displaying a variety of architectural styles, are located throughout the archipelago. Not far off shore is Wheelers Island, first known as Page’s Island. In 1865 Henry B. Frisbie purchased the island from Alonson Hall and built a Victorian cottage with an Italianate cupola. Frank Wheeler of Meriden, an avid yachtsman, acquired the island in 1885 and the Wheeler family owned it until 1998. It was acquired by Christine Svenningsen, a wealthy widow. The old house on Wheeler’s Island was torn down in 1999, but soon replaced with a recreation. Svenningsen began purchasing more of the Thimble Islands from 2003 to 2007, spending $33 million and eventually owning ten. In 2010 she married John G. Chiarella, Jr., a landscaping entrepreneur whose company managed the island properties. The couple divorced three years later and a $250 million legal battle followed. Wheeler’s Island is also known as Ghost Island because it is reputed to be haunted.
In 1848 Lucius Lyon constructed a seminary building on the site now occupied by Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church in Essex. It was constructed to house students at the neighboring Hills Academy. In 1869 the building was converted into a hotel called the Pettipaug House. Operating under several other names over the years, the building was sold to Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic parish in 1926. The parish‘s previous church had been the former St. John’s Episcopal Church, acquired by the parish in 1897 and destroyed by fire in 1925. Extensive work was undertaken on the former hotel to convert it into a church, such that it was considered to be essentially a new building, although remaining on the earlier building’s foundation. The original east-facing entrance was replaced by the new church’s south-facing entrance. The church was again completely renovated in 1997, giving it a much altered appearance.
Ukrainian immigrants in Colchester formed a church in 1921, purchasing a house on Pleasant Street. The ground floor was to serve as a chapel and the second floor as the residence of the pastor. The new church was called the Greek Catholic Orthodox Independent Church of St. Mary. The parish became a member of the Ukrainian Catholic Diocese in 1948 and a church with a gilded Byzantine cupola was soon constructed. The church was destroyed by an explosion on September 10, 2004. The cornerstone for a new St. Mary’s Ukrainian Catholic Church was dedicated on Monday, August 15, 2005 and the building, located 178 Linwood Avenue, was completed the following year.
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