| FAHS
Museum and Archive The museum and archive collections focus on the history, culture, and traditions of the Finnish Americans who settled in the Northeastern region of the United States. Hours: Wednesdays and the 2nd and 4th Saturday of the month, 10 a.m. to 3p.m., May - October, or by appointment. Call the Hall at 860 546-6671 or email info@fahs-ct.org for an appointment. |
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| The FAHS Museum is currently
undergoing a major transformation. In late
Spring of last year, FAHS was awarded a Museum
Makeover grant to create a new interactive
display for visitors in conjunction with
Conservation ConneCTion and the Connecticut
League of History Organizations. The grant is
administered by CT Humanities and funding was
provided by the Connecticut Department of
Community and Development/ Connecticut Office of
the Arts from the Connecticut State Legislature. The Collections Management Committee worked for the next several months with two Traveling Museum Curators assigned to FAHS by the grant administrator, Elysa Engleman from the Mystic Seaport Museum and Nicole Carpenter from the Westport Museum for History & Culture. Arleen Andersen, a graphic designer with the Mystic Seaport Museum, also consulted on the project. The new wall panel, “What We Bring With Us,” and the companion interactive door panel, “What Would You Bring?” were installed on November 5, 2022. The wall panel focuses on the Memories, Traditions, and Hope that immigrants brought to their new homes in Eastern Connecticut. The interactive door panel invites visitors to fill in a card to post on the doorway, stating what they might bring with them if they were moving to a new location. The museum transformation continued into December when the entire museum was dismantled and the walls and ceilings were given a new coat of paint. The museum is slowly coming back to life. Additional new displays are in progress and will focus on the themes of Nature, Community, and the Arts. The museum will reopen to the public in May and an Open House is planned for Saturday, June 10th, in conjunction with CT Open House Day. |
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Arleen Andersen, Katrina
Bousquet, and Elysa Engleman mount new panel
 Patti Folsom checks out
new Finnish flag magnets for interactive
display
 Kaz Kozlowski dresses
mannequin with newly donated folk costume
 Travis Jacobsen of
Northeast Painting painted the two rooms
of the museum
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