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Video Project Funding
Some have asked about funding. "Where is the money coming from?", "Is
the Town paying for this?".
The answer is that the Video Project has been totally financed by
sponsors and not at all by town money. Yes, it is true that initial costs
were paid with the town's "seed money", but that money has been repaid in full by
the sponsors. We expect the net costs after subtracting sales revenue to be
about $25,000. Our sponsors have underwritten
all of those costs.
Legacy Opportunity
The video was sponsored by five multi-generation Middlebury families as a
legacy.
Sponsor names appear in the credits of the video and also on the outside
slipcase package. Sponsors will be recognized in the promotion of the video and
have been invited as recognized guests at an "invitation only" showing of the video
along with the production team.
Video Project Sequel
Sequel? A sequel?
Yes, the videographer took more than sixty hours of interviews
and historical footage of Middlebury. The first 90 minute DVD captures
the 200 years using pieces of the interviews, but does not linger on any
topic. The proposed sequel will explore some of the interesting
stories
that did not get on the first DVD, and it will give these stories more
time and depth.
Terry McAuliffe at 203-758-1492
or E-Mail
bicentennial@middlebury-ct.org.
Sponsors Please Contact
If you'd like to help sponsor the sequel to the first video,
please call:
Ray Pietrorazio 758-2413
Town Photos of Middlebury Still Needed
The project team still needs photos (and footage) of stores
and other places in Middlebury that have changed or
are nor here any longer. Anything from the 40's,
50's, 60's, 70's and even the 80's is needed.
We want to show the Middlebury of yesterday alongside
the Middlebury of today. We will scan your photos at the
Historical Society, while you watch, if you want,
and get them back to you immediately.
.
If you have this
in any form, please
contact:
Terry McAuliffe at 203-758-1492
or E-Mail
bicentennial@middlebury-ct.org.
Unique Stories Needed
For instance, "Spooky Village" or "Little People's
Village"
Stories abound regarding the Little People's Village of
Middlebury, including how a man and his wife resided here while he built this
Lilliputian town dedicated to his wife and her obsession with being Queen of the
Little People.
It is actually right off I84 exit 17 on the Middlebury/Waterbury line.
From "Creepy Connecticut"
Legend is that there was a man and woman who lived there and she was crazy and
thought she was the Queen of the little people. She made her husband build her a
throne and all the little houses. Then she killed her husband and herself or he
killed her and himself. There are different variations of the story.
It is also suspected that this house was not a house at all. It was
actually a very popular roadside attraction along the very busy trolley line
that ran from Waterbury, through Middlebury, and into Quassy Lake Resort from
1908 to 1929. The so-called house was actually a gift/souvenir shop (hence the
close quarters) that showcased the Little People's Village. There was no woman
who deemed herself the Queen of the Little People and, for all intents and
purposes, this was simply a tourist attraction. The throne was, as surmised, not
a throne but part of a fountain and floral garden (hence all the clay pipes).
While we're still not sure why all the clay pipes were in place throughout the
property, we have a theory. We believe that several or all of the little houses
were supplied with piping so that small ponds, pools and fountains could be fed
with water. If this is so, the Little People's Village would have been a
splendid sight to behold! There is even an elderly person in Middlebury who
vaguely remembers that an old man with a long white beard was the proprietor of
this tourist attraction."
From "Wierd New England" Copyright
WierdUS Joe Citro
We want to interview an old
person who knows "the truth" about this place.
You'd need to be a child or teenager in the 1930's.
If you have information or pictures about "Spooky Village",
or any other unique story or place, please
contact:
Terry McAuliffe at 203-758-1492
bicentennial@middlebury-ct.org.
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