Fun and educational events, gatherings, concerts and places to visit this June, July and August, both around the New Haven area and across Connecticut! These are obviously not an exhaustive list and I admit will be biased towards my own interests and goals, which include lots of hiking, music, history and nature-focused activities!

New Haven Event/Programming Links:

• The Babbler (updated monthly)
• The New Haven List (automatically updated)
• Citywide Events Calendar by Town Green District
• Visit New Haven (+surrounding areas)
• New Haven Independent’s Community Calendar

History Museums/Art Galleries/Educational Centers

• Museum of Connecticut History — The exhibit material includes historic documents, like Connecticut’s Royal Charter, with special exhibits featuring Colt firearms and CT Governors.
  • 231 Capitol Ave., Hartford
• Mark Twain House & Museum — Walk the rooms and hallways where Samuel Clemens walked and learn about the daily life of the author who produced many masterpieces, like Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.
  • Daily tours take you through richly decorated rooms and 16,000 artifacts that include period furniture, paintings, photos, first edition books and author notes. Not to mention his pool table, where he enjoyed many late night games and cigars, ha! Highly, highly recommend.
  • 351 Farmington Ave., Hartford
• Connecticut Trolley Museum—Enjoy a three-mile round trip ride on antique trolleys
  • 58 North Road, East Windsor
• Connecticut River Museum — The museum celebrates its 50th anniversary. Permanent exhibits and murals explore the Connecticut River’s history from Indigenous peoples through the 20th century, and illustrate the environmental impact and importance in the region for water power, quarrying and the fishing industry.
  • 67 Main St., Steamboat Dock, Essex
• Harriet Beecher Stowe Center—A National Historic Landmark and a stop on the CT Freedom Trail, the center houses 228,000 items that illustrate the lives and times of Stowe and her family, like the dining table where she wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
  • 77 Forest Street, Hartford
• New Britain Industrial Museum — History of manufacturing in Central Connecticut in this museum, ft. products made in the region over the past 200 years.
  • 185 Main St., New Britain
• Old Manchester Museum — Local historical artifacts include Pitkin Glass Works, Brothers Silk Mills, Bon Ami Soap, research and genealogy library.
  • 126 Cedar St, Manchester
• Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum — Three houses make up this museum, each built in the 18th century, where Washington and his partners planned their strategy that led to a victory at Yorktown in 1781. Two are now National Historic Landmarks, furnished to represent a different period in American history.
  • 211 Main St., Wethersfield
• Connecticut Science Center — A trip is sure to entertain, providing a high-impact learning experience that will stimulate adults and children alike with hands-on, engaging exhibits and programs that emphasize current science and information you can use every day.
  • 250 Columbus Blvd., Hartford
• Mattatuck Museum — This art and regional history museum on the Green in downtown Waterbury started out as a historical society in 1877, opening its first display hall in 1912. Since then, it has collected and displayed American art and cultural history that focus on the history of the Naugatuck Valley and artists of Connecticut.
  • Due to the importance of buttons in the city’s economy over the years, the museum is also home to a button gallery, displaying 10,000 miniature works of arts collected from around the globe.
  • 144 West Main St., Waterbury
• The Barnum Museum — The life of Phineas Taylor (PT) Barum and those influenced by his presence are shown through exhibits that include a miniature circus model, ancient mummy, historic costumes and more.
  • 820 Main St., Bridgeport
• Ballard Institute & Museum of Puppetry — A collection of over 2,000 puppets from around the world, including work from many who attended the School of Fine Arts’ Puppet Arts Program at UConn.
  • Weaver Road (off Route 44), Storrs
• Carousel Museum of New England — One of two branches of this unique museum, featuring antique carousel horses, miniature carousels and a historic carving shop. The Bristol Center for Arts and Culture also features three galleries that include fine art exhibits.
  • 95 Riverside Ave., Bristol
• Slater Memorial Museum and Converse Art Gallery — Step onto the campus of Norwich Free Academy to explore the museum, founded by philanthropist William Slater over 100 years ago. The museum features a diverse collection of fine and decorative arts, historical artifacts and ethnographic material spanning five continents and 35 centuries.
  • 108 Crescent St., Norwich
• Institute for American Indian Studies Museum and Research Center — Explore what life was like in Connecticut 1,000 years ago, sit in a dugout canoe, use replicated tools, enjoy hiking trails and outdoor gardens and learn from changing exhibits that depict village life.
  • 38 Curtis Rd., Washington
• Mashantucket Pequot Museum & Research Center — Permanent exhibits on the Native and natural history of southern New England include a cool descent into a glacial crevasse from 18,000 years ago. Walk through a 1550 Pequot village, visit two research libraries and interact with interactive computer programs and films that provide additional information and interpretation of the exhibits.
  • 110 Pequot Trail, Ledyard
• Eric Sloane Museum and Kent Iron Furnace — Museum featuring a collection of woodworking tools dating from the 17th century as well as the ruins of the Kent Furnace, which was used through the 19th century.
  • 31 Kent Cornwall Road (Route 7), Kent
• Prudence Crandall Museum — Crandall opened the Canterbury Female Boarding School in 1832, which was closed due to protests over its integration of Black women. It would reopen in 1833 for Black and Brown students, drawing students from several states, which would cause Connecticut to pass a “Black Law” preventing out-of-state Black and Brown students from attending school in the state without local town approval.
  • Crandall’s eventual jailing and attacks upon her from nighttime mobs would make national and international news, which helped to galvanize the burgeoning abolitionist movement.
  • 1 South Canterbury Road, Canterbury
• Barker Character, Comic & Cartoon Museum — Over 80,000 items including toys and character collectibles from 1873 to present; Western, TV and advertising collectibles; cartoon memorabilia; the official museum for Celebriducks, the California Raisin and Gumby; sculpture gallery.
  • 1188 Highland Ave (Route 10), Cheshire
• Florence Griswold Museum — This 20th century boarding house was the hub for one of America’s most important summer art colonies, which attracted artists like Henry Ward Ranger, Childe Hassam, Willard Metcalf and more who helped shape the Tonalist and Impressionist movement.
  • 96 Lyme St., Old Lyme
• Lyman Allyn Art Museum — The center features 18th-, 19th- and 20th-century art and decorative arts, American Impressionist paintings, contemporary arts and an outdoor children’s art park.
  • 625 Williams St., New London

Botanical Gardens, Arboretums & Nature Centers

An expansive list of environmental-related events across the state is provided by the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection.

Here are a few recommendations for this Summer, with another list of nature centers in CT available on Wikipedia here.

• Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens — Explore 93 acres of parkland, gardens, landscapes and hiking trails that focus on the regional plants, ecology and character of Southwestern New England. Over 3,500 species. Guided tours every third Thursday @ 11am-12:30pm. (151 Brookdale Road, Stamford)
• Connecticut Audubon Birdcraft Museum & Sanctuary — A historic museum, which highlights natural history of the state with dioramas, wildlife exhibits and dinosaur footprints, sits adjacent to a 6-acre sanctuary with trails.
  • 314 Unquowa Road, Fairfield
• Audubon Center at Bent of the River — a 700-acre preserve in Southbury features about 15 miles of trails through fields, forests, shrub and grasslands along the Pomperaug River. Some Native American artifacts found near the Bent and on display in the Barn are estimated at 3,000 years old.
  • When founded Mrs. Althea Clark bequeathed the land to Audubon with an endowment to be used for its maintenance and education programs, she left explicit instructions about the maintenance of the land, such as preserving it for native florida and fauna and having no trail blazes or interpretive signs. “She wanted the Bent to be kept in a state of ‘mild wildness’,” Audubon says.
  • 185 E Flat Hill Road, Southbury
• Mystic Seaport Museum of America and the Sea — Maritime museum that preserves artifacts of America’s seafaring past, covering 19 acres on the Mystic River that includes a re-created 19th-century coastal village, a working shipyard and formal exhibit halls. The Seaport is home to more than 500 historic watercraft, including four National Historic Landmark vessels (America’s oldest commercial ship in existence).
  • 75 Greenmanville Ave., Mystic
• Connecticut College Arboretum — About 750 acres of landscaped campus grounds and Greenhouse, ft. a native plant section, other collections and natural areas. The entire campus property is available for teaching and research in environmental studies, the biological sciences and other academic programs, with tours and programs regularly offered in addition to free public access.
• Stamford Museum & Nature Center — Explore the Bendel Mansion, built in the 1920s, and the 10-acre Heckscher Farm that serves as a learning site on rural and farm life. The institution also hosts nature trails, an otter pond, observatory and planetarium. (39 Scofieldtown Road, Stamford)

Hiking Checklist

Editor’s Note: I will continue to add to this when I think of places I like. Please send any recommendations and I’ll add to the list!

Hiking Thru History — Join the Museum of Connecticut History on free Friday hikes at historic sites all around Connecticut. All hikes begin at 10am and are open to the public. Registration required: sign up here!

• June 20: Topsmead State Forest (Litchfield)
• July 18: Cotton Hollow Preserve, Glastonbury
• August 8: Hartford Riverfront
• September 19: Old Connecticut Path, Willington
• October 17: Penwood State Park, Bloomfield

Let’s see how many spots you can cross off this summer!

Ride the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail!

Since planning began in 2009, Phase IV of bicycle and pedestrian trail was completed in May, now going through the remaining downtown below-grade sections near Audubon Street and down to Grove Street. The trail runs 80 miles from Northampton to New Haven, with unfinished sections remaining in Southington and Plainville.

Phase IV spanned three mayors and three City Plan directors. The 1.6-mile project starting construction in 2021 and cost $12 million, which was financed through a combination of federal and state funds and money secured through a development agreement between the city of New Haven and Yale, the Independent reported.

Hop on and take a ride up through New Haven, Hamden, Cheshire and Southington! Key stops include:

• Scantlebury Park: Start your journey downtown, then stop for a quick game of pickleball or enjoy the local skateboarders working on their latest tricks.
• Fuzzy Coffee: Alternatively, you can get your morning cup of Joe from this java shop that serves as a great place for conversation or providing fuel for all the cutting edge research taking place on Science Hill. The location also host e-bikes and traditional bicycles that can be unlocked and rented through the Ride New Haven app ($1 to unlock, $0.25 per mile)!
• Sergio’s Pizza: Follow the trail through Newhallville and into Hamden, crossing a series of stop-and-go road crossings that follow Whitney Avenue to Mount Carmel and Quinnipiac, where Sergio’s sits, offering picnic benches to sit and recharge.
• Kinsman Brewing Company: The line passes the Milldale Train Depot in Southington before bringing bikers to this brewery, which offers a large indoor space, cold beer and a pizzeria (made on site!) Continue on 15 minutes North to Factory Square, a converted building that hosts an ax-throwing venue, coffee shop, pizza and Witchdoctor Brewing Company.

Festivals, Fairs and Fun

• August 15-16: The Milford Oyster Festival
  • After 50 years, the festival will now be an evening-only event from 5pm to 10pm and will take place in Fowler Field only. This year’s event will feature music from the School of Rock, Backstage Pass, Dave & Chrissy, Philadelphia Freedom and Almost Queen. $8 admission.