Around Town

New Canaan Museum & Historical Society Buys St. Michael’s Lutheran Church Property

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One of New Canaan’s most venerable nonprofit organizations has purchased an 1830-built church next door, officials say. The New Canaan Museum & Historical Society announced in a press release that it has acquired the adjacent 2.3-acre St. Michael’s Lutheran Church on Oenoke Ridge. “The property, adjacent to the Museum’s campus, contains the oldest church in New Canaan, formerly St. Mark’s Episcopal and now St.

Around Town

Domestic Violence and Partner Abuse in New Canaan [Q&A]

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Town officials say that New Canaan residents in abusive relationships often report that their spouse refuses to pay agreed-upon child support, and a recent community wellness survey showed that 134 people here have safety concerns about someone in their home. Even so, more than one-third of respondents said in a recent survey that they don’t know where to access domestic violence support. These are some of the data points that Dede Bartlett, founder of the New Canaan Abuse Prevention Partnership, shared during a conversation Sunday at New Canaan Library. (Note: The library has set aside a book list display to mark the month, view the book list here.)

We met because February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, to talk about domestic violence and partner abuse. Here’s a transcription of our conversation.

Around Town

‘A Real Treasure’: Jim & Dede Bartlett Center for New Canaan History Opens at NCM&HS

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The New Canaanite 2024 Summer Internship Program is sponsored by Karp Associates. New Canaan has long been an epicenter of rich history and culture. It’s apparent in the buildings downtown, library, schools, parks and local organizations. It’s also apparent in the people, some of whom have left indelible marks on the town. 

Recently, the New Canaan Museum & Historical Society opened a permanent exhibit to highlight just that: the people and ideas that have left a profound legacy on New Canaan. The “Jim and Dede Bartlett Center for New Canaan History” is “the cornerstone of a $2 million dollar ‘Campus Reimagined’ project,” said Nancy Geary, executive director of the New Canaan Museum & Historical Society.

Dede Bartlett

‘New Canaan’s Invisible Crisis’: Domestic Violence Panel Discussion Set for Thursday Evening [Q&A]

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A panel of experts on Thursday evening will discuss what local police have described as “New Canaan’s violent crime”: domestic violence. Moderated by local advocate Dede Bartlett, the panel discussion titled ‘New Canaan’s Invisible Crisis: A Conversation About Domestic Violence’ will be held 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday in the Jim & Dede Bartlett Auditorium at New Canaan Library (register here, there were already 150 people signed up as of last week). We put some questions to Bartlett ahead of the talk, which she notes also marks the fifth anniversary of Jennifer Dulos’s murder. “Our goal in presenting this program is to raise awareness of domestic violence,” Bartlett told NewCanaanite.com. “To give people resources to help a friend in need; and to describe what we all need to do to make New Canaan a healthier place.”
Here’s our full exchange.

Around Town

Work Starts at NCM&HS for ‘Bartlett Center for New Canaan History’; May 31 Grand Opening Planned

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After moving to an historic Oenoke Ridge property many years ago, Dede Bartlett discovered that she and her husband were just its thirteenth owners since 1749. Soon after, Bartlett said, she began to find “incredible artifacts all over the property—pottery shards, horseshoes, old tools.”

“It’s marvelous,” she said Monday morning from the large room that used to house the research library on the main floor of the New Canaan Museum & Historical Society. 

“We’ve got two antique barns that are well over 200 years old. And I thought, we really should be doing something more with that. So [NCM&HS Executive Director] Nancy [Geary] and I have worked on a number of projects over the years. Probably three or four projects.