| AUGUST 1, 2012 -- A pair of Winsted natives joined together with the holders of Frank DeMars’s photographs to help illustrate Winchester’s colorful past.
Verna Gibson, a research assistant at the Beardsley and Memorial Library, and Northwestern Connecticut Community College adjunct professor Virginia Shultz-Charette teamed up to write “Winsted and Winchester”, one of the more recent additions to Arcadia Publishing’s Images of America series. The two authors will sign the book on August 11 at the Winchester Center Chapel from 10 a.m. to noon, in conjunction with the Winchester Center Historical Association.
“It’s a local book about Winchester and Winsted,” said Winchester Center Historical Association board member Doris Lyng.
The book series collects photographs from throughout the history of various towns and regions, and Gibson and Shultz-Charette had no shortage of source material. Both authors dug through the trove of photographs taken by Frank DeMars during the 1940s, which document the history of Winsted before its decimation in the Flood of 1955.
“The authors are local,” said Lyng, “and throughout the book, they’re using old photographs from the DeMars collection.”
The two authors have plenty of experience with the intertwined histories of Winsted and Winchester. Gilson worked at numerous museums and historical societies before coming to the Beardsley and Memorial Library’s genealogy department. Shultz-Charette, on the other hand, has been the president of the Friends of the Beardsley and Memorial Library for four years, leads a discussion group at the library and joined the Sodier’s Monument Commission.
Released on July 2, “Winsted and Winchester” recounts the history of the two titular regions before their consolidation. The rural Winchester town eventually absorbed the more industrialized Winsted borough, which was incorporated in 1858 and quickly grew into a manufacturing force. While much of downtown Winsted washed away in the 1955 flood — 90 percent of the town’s businesses were erased — “Winsted and Winchester” uses pre-flood photographs to recount stories from the town’s history.
Lyng said the selection of August 11, when the Winchester Grange will hold their fair, was not coincidental. The foot traffic was an appealing option, according to Lyng. In addition, the society will also hold a raffle, with prizes including a night at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, wines and tickets to Infinity Hall.
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