Topics

A repository for things that catch my eye as I research the neighborhood's history. Mostly they are questions that sparked my curiosity, and I plan to record items that I think are relevant to the topic.

Topics

Cathedral Fire of 1956

On Monday, December 31, 1956, a fire broke out in the basement of the Cathedral of Saint Joseph and quickly made its way up the back of the structure. The fire was discovered after the 7:00 AM Mass, and firefighters were quickly on the scene. At 10:45 AM, the fire broke through the roof of the sacristy at the rear of the building and then flashed across the whole of the roof. At that point, the Cathedral was lost, and firefighters shifted their focus to preventing the spread of the fire to other buildings.

Pliny Jewell and His Frogs

The story: Pliny Jewell fed live mice to bullfrogs living in a pond on his estate at 210 Farmington Avenue. He would announce dinner to the frogs by ringing a bell, and the frogs would come up out of the pond and gather around his seat. He would then dangle the mice by their tails from a stick, and the frogs would leap up to grab them.

Rabbit Holes

Other events that happened in and around Hartford, some related to Asylum Hill, some just fun things encountered going down research rabbit holes ...