Connecticut Explored

Got five minutes? That’s all you need to read a new and unique story about Connecticut History!

For more than a decade, Walt Woodward wrote the “From the State Historian” column in Connecticut Explored, a quarterly, non-profit glossy magazine that explores the state’s cultural heritage through intriguing images and compelling stories.  These columns kick off each issue with a short story that contextualizes some of our state’s most famous people and symbols, or highlights some little-known facet about Connecticut history.  At a glance, it’s easy to see the incredible variety of fascinating topics tied to the history of Connecticut — there’s no denying that our small state has made a huge national impact over the past centuries!

Visit Connecticut Explored online at ctexplored.org to browse past magazine issues, explore special features, and read about upcoming events related to Connecticut history and culture. Don’t forget to subscribe!

Selected Columns:

Below is a sampling of some of Walt’s favorite columns.  You can browse an expanded archive of State Historian Columns on Connecticut Explored’s website.

• Connecticut’s Most Enduring Brand
  A brief history of the state seal and its nearly four-century old-slogan “Qui Transtulit Sustinet.”
• A Pint-Sized View of War
  A picture of children signing a bomb at Bradley Field during World War II strikingly reminds us that not too long ago Connecticans thought very differently about war, and children.
• Immigrants All
  It’s never good to forget where you came from, especially since all of us Connecticans originally came from somewhere else.
• Nutmeg Adds Spice — But Is It Nice?
  Of all Connecticut’s Nicknames (and there are many), fit’s hard to find one more unusual, long-lasting, and less flattering than “The Nutmeg State.”

• Connecticut: America’s First Research Laboratory
  From the beginning, even before it was a state, Connecticut was a place of scientific research and innovation and a magnet for both talent and ideas.
• Sweet Democracy: The History of the Connecticut Election Cake
  Now, when elections often leave so many with a bad taste in their mouths, may be just the right moment to bring back the Connecticut Election Cake.
• What’s a Puritan, and Why Didn’t They Stay in Massachusetts?
  It’s time to clear up some stubborn misconceptions about the men and women who founded the Colony of Connecticut.
• Discovering the Explorer Hiram Bingham
  From the State Capitol to Yale to Machu Picchu, perhaps no Connectican has made a more lasting—or more controversial—impression than Hiram Bingham III.