Museums
Brick Schoolhouse
The Brick Schoolhouse on Merrow Road opens for the season on May 16th. It will be open the 1st and 3rd Sundays of each month from 1 to 4 P.M. through October 3rd.
Strong Porter Museum, South Street
The Strong Porter Museum will open for the season on June 6th. It will be open from 12 to 3 p.m. every Sunday through October 10th.
The Coventry Historical Society owns and mantains two museums whose purposes are two-fold:
- to acquire and preserv printed material and artifacts related to the town of Coventry and make these materials available for reference and research
- to educate the public about the history of Coventry and its inhabitants through displays, programs and publications
Strong-Porter
Museum - circa
1730, is listed on the National Register of
Historic Places and serves as the Historical Society's
Museum. Five rooms of the house, as well as several
outbuildings, including a carpenter shop, carriage sheds,
and barn are open to the public. Of special interest is the
19th century privy, recently returned to its original
location and accurately restored. The Great Barn Foundation,
located at the back of the property was uncovered in 2002.
The barn originally stood two-stories high, with livestock
housed on the upper, ground level floor that was accessed by
ramps at either end of the barn, and equipment and other
farming implements being housed on the lower
level.
Located at 2382 South Street, just west of the Nathan Hale Homestead, Coventry, Connecticut 06238 - Open seasonally June through mid-October. Admission is free.
Brick
Schoolhouse - built 1823-25, is located on Merrow Road . This school is the center of study and
research on what school was like in the early 20th century
up through present day schools. The Society's Education
Director, Ginney Dilk, has been working diligently to
collect oral histories from people who attended school in
the one-room schoolhouses in Coventry . She has received
many donations of photographs and other memorabilia from
former students and teachers. These items are on display at
the Brick School seasonally, May through October.
The Brick School is open to the public on the first and third Sundays of the month, May through October from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and on special occasions. Our "Sundae on a Sunday" ice cream social is held at the Brick School each year on Fathers' Day. It's a great time to see the school and listen to folks reminisce about school in the good ole days. Admission is free. Donations are gratefully accepted.
Merrow Road, at the intersection of Goose Lane, Coventry, Connecticut 06238 - Open seasonally mid-May through mid-October. Admission is free.
These museums are supported completely by the efforts of community volunteers. If you would like to volunteer at either museum, please call 860-742-7474.