The Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum, in Wethersfield, Connecticut, will host a lecture featuring celebrated historian and scholar William Hosley. An outspoken activist for the preservation of the rich cultural history of Connecticut and New England, Hosley brings more than 30 years’ experience in art, antiques and history to his entertaining lectures. On Thursday, September 27, Hosley will regale his audience with epic stories of sacrifice, heroism and perseverance during his lecture, “Lighting Freedom’s Flame: A Look at Connecticut’s Revolutionary War.”
Hosley maintains that because Connecticut was not the site of any major Revolutionary War battles it has been relegated to the margins of the story of America’s journey to independence. He will illustrate how Connecticut did indeed play a wide-ranging role during the period, and was the home of some of the Revolution’s most renowned and infamous personalities, including Nathan Hale, Benedict Arnold, Israel Putnam, Silas Deane, Roger Sherman, the Compte de Rouchambeau, and Governor Jonathan Trumbull. Connecticut was also the site of memorable battles and skirmishes, at Ridgefield and Groton Heights—and the burning of New London and Fairfield—and played a major role in provisioning troops. Hosley will demonstrate that the American Revolution was also a “civil war” that pitted neighbor against neighbor and inflicted enormous suffering and damage on Connecticut citizens.
Lecture will be preceded by a wine reception (by donation) at 6 p.m. Admission to the lecture is free and donations will be accepted.
