Stamford History Real Time

Holiday Closings: Thanksgiving Weekend

The Society will be closed Thursday, November 25 through Saturday, November 27, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving!

Holiday Gift-Making for Children 6 – 12 yrs Saturday, December 11, 9:30 to 12:30 PM

Saturday, December 11
9:30 to 12:30 PM
Holiday Gift-Making
for Children 6 – 12 yrs
Drop off for children over age 9 only
Allow one hour per gift.

Fee: $15 to make one gift / $25 to make two gifts.

Combine creativity and fun when doing your holiday "shopping." Children are invited to make gifts for relatives and friends. Templates and materials for lovely and useful items will be provided. Educators and teen volunteers will help your child create a unique gift for you or another special person. We will even help your child wrap up the craft items for easy gift-giving. Partake in an old fashioned holiday tradition while supporting the Stamford Historical Society!

Workshop limited to 75 people.
Please call 203-329-1183 for reservations.

Whitman Bailey Selection for November: Section of Old Stage Yard near Relay Place

(How did we miss October?)

Section of Old Stage Yard near Relay Place

Download Newspaper Clipping of November 22, 1941

Our usual warning seems to apply here:

"At times, the accompanying vignettes are mostly folklore passed on to Mr. Bailey by residents of the areas where he was sketching.  In those instances he had no way of determining the truth of the story.  Nor have we.  It is presented as a sidelight to the sketch.  Therefore, researchers are cautioned to regard these tales as local color, interesting, thought provoking, but sometimes not entirely factual."

The Bibliography of Stamford, item 166 has this abstract:

"Before the establishment of the USPOD most of the post offices were kept in stores or the home of the then acting postmaster. In the earliest times they were usually in a tavern or inn that also served as a stop for the post rider or stage coach. The first Posts arrived monthly or fortnightly; later twice weekly, not until the coming of the railroad did daily service materialize. Stamford, being the halfway point on the post road between New York and New Haven required a place for the changing of horses and a new Stage House and Stage Yard was erected at the corner of East Main Street and Stage Street to handle both the horses, passengers and the mails. ........ The mails for the main Stamford Post Office were sent via the Lower Post Road from New York via New Haven to Boston until the arrival of the New York & New Haven RR in 1847. The main or upper route went via White Plains to Bedford and thence to Ridgefield, Ct., and on to Hartford via Danbury."