Each community, past and present, has its own story to tell. We have fleshed out some of the story of Aldrichville, a sawmill village established by local businessman/logger Barney Aldrich in the 1880's. It operated for more than 20 years before being abandoned in favor of a new location in the valley, nearer Wallingford's downtown and railroad. At the time of its peak operation the village consisted of a steam-powered mill, a store, school, blacksmith shop, boarding house, and roughly a dozen households -- divided into French- and English-speaking neighborhoods.

Our two-week "Relics & Ruins" summer program for kids, ages 10-14, investigated the Aldrichville story from 1997-1999. Campers were introduced to a range of methods for investigating historic lifestyles and environments. We used archaeology, oral history, art, music, photography, documentary research, and creative writing to achieve a sense of the ways and quality of life in this village. We also discussed the effect such an operation had on the local environment (the forests and streams didn't look like they do now!), and why stewardship of our cultural and natural resources is important. We also had fun!