In a previous blog I mentioned placing some emphasis on women of note. One of my favorites is Prudence Crandall, the school teacher who defended her decision to educate African American girls.

Crandall was born in Hopkinton, RI on September 3, 1803. Following a brief period of teaching school she moved to Canterbury, CT. In 1831 she opened a private girls’ academy. It enjoyed a very high reputation within both Connecticut and Rhode Island.. By 1833 her activist urges surfaced and she enrolled the first African American girl.

This outraged the local citizenry and it led to ongoing criticism and persecution. There were attempts to torch the facility. The Connecticut legislature enacted a bill that forbade establishing schools for non resident African Americans without local authority consent.

Crandall was indicted under what was then known as the “Black Law” and was imprisoned in 1834. The conviction was reversed by the court of appeals on technical grounds. Mob violence forced her to close the school and with husband Rev. Calvin Philleo, they moved to Kansas to live with her brother.

Connecticut’s Black Law was repealed in 1838 and in 1886 the Connecticut legislature awarded her a small pension in an effort to make amends. Crandall died in Kansas on January 28, 1890.

The Crandall restored home and former school is open to the public.

The title of this blog is about the only thing historians and experts agree on: it’s the Newport Tower that sits in a public park facing the harbor and the Atlantic Ocean. The sign on the building describes it as an “old Stone Mill” possibly built in 1660 by Rhode Island’s first governor, Benedict Arnold. He called it my stone built windmill which has prompted skepticism. There are those who say it could not have been so as it did not fit any of the structure designs to support such an enterprise.

Legend attributes it to visiting Norsemen around 1000A.D. Debate has raged for many years as to its origin of who the builders were. The Newport Historical Society recognizes it as nothing more than a colonial mill. Part of its claim to fame is there is not anything similar that exists in other areas of New England. Of the many open areas around and inside the building, there have not been any Norse artifacts or grain shards to uphold this origin and use.

While researching the tower’s history I came across this: an ancient document exists that tells of a Bishop from Greenland who arrived in Vinland, the name for Newport then, who hoped to Christianize local inhabitants in the year 1121. Some have attributed the building date to him. It has been referred to as The Bishop’s Tower.

The tower is believed by many to have been of maritime use as it faces both the harbor and the Atlantic Ocean and may have served as a lighthouse and lookout for invaders. Its architectural style has also been compared to Scottish and Templar architectural styles.

The debates will continue on for years to come. However when Narragansett Indians were asked who built the Newport Tower they answered “fair-haired men with green eyes who sailed up the river in a ship like a gull with a broken wing.” Does lend credence to Norsemen whose ships had the elongated bows that could look birdlike. Or maybe not.

In our neighboring state of Rhode Island in the region of South County is a section of North Kingstown called Saunderstown. It is a portion of the township that includes Wickford, Shady Lee, Davisville, Allenton and Lafayette. Living in a localized area provided a sense of neighborhood pride and identification.

Saunderstown is noted for two distinct individuals: Artist Gilbert Stuart known as the George Washington artist for his many paintings of Washington and Thomas Lincoln Casey. Casey’s father Silas served as Major General during the Mexican-American War and with the same rank during the Civil War. Son Thomas graduated first in his class from West Point Academy following which he was assigned to the Corps of Engineers. Many fortifications on the Northeast coast and huge Fort Knox were his projects.

The tie-in between Caey and Washington happened like this: Following the Civil War plans for a suitable monument to President Washington were debated. An attempt was made but got bogged down during the building. It stood approximately 159 feet high. Mark Twain said it would be an eyesore and an ugly chimney

It was then that Casey got involved. He drew up plans to restrengthen what existed and finish the job. Casey’s plan was approved in mid 1878 and work commenced immediately. The foundation which he determined not sufficient to hold the structure was rebuilt and decisions regarding its height were reached at 555 feet. A formal dedication occurred in February, 1885.

It stands today as perpendicular as the day it was erected. Only the one in Pisa, Italy has the distinction of leaning.

We New Englanders have been blessed with a host of authors who are known for their great works of literature. Let’s start with Harriet Beecher Stowe and’ Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” A book President Lincoln said may have started the Civil War.

A short list includes the following and a favorite work: John Irving, “The Cider House Rules.” Robert Frost, “The Road Not taken.” Louisa May Alcott, “Little Women.” Grace Metalious, “Peyton Place.” Nathaniel Hawthorne, “The Scarlet Letter.” Jack Kerouac, “On The Road.” Let me share a tidbit of local information. Kerouac has relations living right here in Brooklyn, CT.

We here in NE Connecticut can also take pride in Putnam’s own Gertrude Chandler Warner who undoubtedly has been responsible for starting her first grade students on a voyage into the land of books and the benefits of reading. There is a museum to her in Putnam along the rail road tracks that she used to launch the Box Car Mysteries series.

I recall when Peyton Place came out it was considered rather risque and was touted to be a block buster because it was banned in Boston, what many critics considered a sure sign of success. Two other authors that I should not omit and I’m sure will be known to many are Sebastian Junger, who wrote “The Perfect Storm.” and of course Herman Melville for “Moby Dick.”

Yes indeed. Among the best if not the best!