Litchfield High School - Yearbook (Litchfield, CT)

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.. 7 'f . lp S:--- : ' 4g,,. . 1 111 fi , i f fr 1 , f 5 I . J - -, lg' UI ,, r V , ,V -1 'R - F Q. 7 Th 'et Beechef e Old Joh - 1 - The site oi liarri 011 No,-th str:etPierce house Stowe'S hom ' ' This is the , h . EPM S Public 132: of Luch- histor' . FY and the ical Soclety. Q . to the Smoke Club stated that all of Litch- field's boys were looking forward to being home on Labor Day in 1918 and that they all have that old New England spirit all right. With the coming of Armistice Day on November 11, Litchfield was the scene of much celebration. A bonfire was built, confetti thrown, a parade formed, and im- promptu speeches given. As our men re- turned to Litchfield, various welcoming celebrations were given but on the follow- ing Fourth of July, a general Welcome Home Day was observed for all those re- turning from the Service. The granite monument which was erected on the green opposite the Court House, bears one hun- dred sixty-eight names, ten being followed by a gold star. Now, Litchfield turned once more to the pursuits of peacetime. She was no longer the flourishing town of Revolutionary days, but had become a self-existent little community. The old houses changed hands, the summer visitors from New York came and went and Litchfield remained -T? E

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The only house built during the period of the First Con- gregational Church which is still standing today is the birthplace of Ethan Allen. With the coming of World War I, the townspeople felt once more that old surge of patriotism which had so permeated Litchfield in Revolutionary days. Indeed, during the short time of tension just be- fore the United States declared war on Germany, a telegram was sent by the lead- ing citizens and businessmen of the town to President Wilson, our Senator, and our Congressman asking for a positive stand for war with Germany. Two companies had been organized before 1917 but, with the formation of the home guard, were disbanded. Extensive food canning pre- The home of Oliver Wol- cott, Governor of Connecti- cut and a signer of the Declaration of Independence, is one of the oldest and most beautiful homes in Litchfield. grams were organized, clubs for the mak- ing of surgical dressings, for knitting, for salvaging certain materials needed by the government, and for the sale of Liberty Bonds. Well-observed were the gasless Sundays, wheat1ess days , and meat- less days . War gardens were to be seen almost everywhere and one of the stations of the Women's Land Army was in Litch- field. While patriotism burned brightly at home, Litchfield's young men were either in training camps or else overseas in actual combat. A letter written by james Weir xiiii ia- .. -A-vig,

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safe in her memories and snug in her future. Although Litchlield's history has been, for the most part, a chronological list of famous men, they have been mentioned as individuals because they were most repre- sentative of their times. But without their followers and supporters, without their insignificant adherents, they could have accomplished nothing. These men and dates are merely sign posts along the darkened road of mans memory which il lumine the shadowy paths where less well known men have struggled to make the history that is necessarily dependent upon their better known associates And so this history is not merely words chosen to describe a stereotyped commu nity but is the remembrance of the known and unknown It is a slight touch upon pulsations the sorrows and Joys of a group of people and the myriad phases of a liv ing, breathing town. It seeks to do homage to those whose graves know no marker as well as those who shall never be forgotten: it praises the old elms planted in Revolu- tionary times and the young saplings which have been planted to replace them and per- haps these latter shall be even more famous than their predecessors. It seeks to touch upon that core, that hidden secret, upon which a town is built and whereby it is main- tained, that inner glow which seized the pilgrim the pioneer the woodsmen and the revolutioni ts But this will to accom plish can never be completely isolated be cause it is so interwoven and entangled with the lives of not only the early settlers but also the present inhabitants and thus the history of Litchfield and of America has become a vital inseparable part of each one of us never to be obliterated by the passage of time f-.I s the Litchfield School System progressed from a one room school house to that edifice which we shall all remember as our Alma Mater so shall it progress in the years to come Already plans are under way for a new high school and as we return to visit it in the future we shall no doubt be much impressed by the advancement in education but none will regret nor will any forget the nostalgic memories of our Litchfield High School gm' X. X l JQCCLI-1 - 'lx . , . 3' . . Q - . ,. i H+ X f'1f7-' oil flu 1 s L ff' f i l , 1 imc ra Hlll'-M X A i . if 0 J ii'-rr-Afg g: 0. of-1 Mm- Fl it A T' iii Qi 1- 7' A 2 ,Gil gr 'Qi ---5-A45 lj'iia -iiiiffg Ll.- , l li Q3