Hi David, My husband and I visited Mark Twain's home in CT. some years ago....a very interesting tour.? What was so cool was that nearby there was an intersection of Sisson Ave. and Sherman Ave.? My husband descends from both of these RI families.? Regards,? Joan Richard > George > Richard > George > Peleg > Richard > James > George > Charles > Warren > Natalie Sisson Fitzsimmons > Michael K. Fitzsimmons (and me, Joan). -----Original Message----- From: sisson-request@rootsweb.com To: sisson@rootsweb.com Sent: Tue, 15 Jul 2008 3:01 am Subject: SISSON Digest, Vol 3, Issue 65 Today's Topics: 1. Sisson Avenue, Hartford, CT (David A Sisson) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:29:10 -0400 From: David A Sisson <dsisson2@rochester.rr.com> Subject: [SISSON] Sisson Avenue, Hartford, CT To: Sisson List <SISSON-L@rootsweb.com> Message-ID: <487B7ED6.8070709@rochester.rr.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed Hello Everyone, I subscribe to "Google alerts" for the Sisson name. Here is one from today's alert. But first, note the directions quoted here from the article, directions to Mark Twain's house in Hartford, Connecticut: "To get to Mark Twain House in Hartford, take Exit 46 off Interstate Highway I-84 towards Sisson Avenue. At the traffic lights, turn right onto *Sisson Avenue* and proceed four blocks. At the second set of traffic lights on Sisson, turn right onto Farmington Avenue and proceed three blocks to the National Historic Site of Twain House. It takes only 10 minutes from the Interstate and there is free parking and a restaurant on the grounds. Visitors should check on seasonal opening hours as the site is closed on Tuesdays in the off-season, January through March and on some public holidays." For a photo of the house and the article itself, see http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/escapade/article/351236 David Arne Sisson Now here is the article: The 19-room home Mark Twain lived in is intriguing in its own right Fred Donnelly For the Telegraph-Journal There is a house on Farmington Avenue in the city of Hartford in the state of Connecticut many claim as the birthplace of the modern American novel. From 1874 to 1891, Mark Twain lived in the 19-room mansion and wrote his most famous works. Now restored to its appearance of 1881 when its interiors were designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany, it and the adjacent museum are open to the public. Marilyn Donnelly Mark Twain wrote his most famous works in this innovative 19-room mansion in Hartford, Co nn., This is where Twain (a.k.a. Samuel Langhorne Clemens) wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) and many other novels like A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889). Admission (adults $13 U.S.) is by tour only. In the lavishly furnished house the upper floor billiard room is most impressive because at a desk in the corner is where Twain did his writing. Architecturally, the house is a curiosity of innovative features and, indeed, I had difficulty finding any room in it with a simple rectangular shape. The tour guides are knowledgeable about both the literary heritage and the domestic lifestyle of the then most famous American writer. The family anecdotes recounted by the interpreters help to make the site kid-friendly. The Hartford home life of this creative genius of American literature sounds amusing today. There were dinners with 12 or more guests several times a week, amateur theatrical productions put on by his children and a continual household tension caused by the clever tricks of his Afro-American servant and friend, George. One of George's tasks was to cover for Twain when he didn't want to receive visitors. To meet the requirements of Victorian American politeness, the author went outside on the upper floor balcony and signaled George who had to say "He just stepped out." The social evenings at Farmington Avenue often went on till 4 a.m. with Twain playing billiards with his male pals in a cigar smoke-filled room. After many drinks, games and recounted tales, the guests flopped in an adjacent bedroom rather than go home. Meanwhile, Mark (Sam when at home) went to join the already retired Mrs. Clemens in the master bedroom. Ah! the poor wife of the great author. To get to Mark Twain House in Hartford, take Exit 46 off Interstate Highway I-84 towards Sisson Avenue. At the traffic lights, turn right onto Sisson Avenue and proceed four blocks. At the second set of traffic lights on Sisson, turn right onto Farmington Avenue and proceed three blocks to the National Historic Site of Twain House. It takes only 10 minutes from the Interstate and there is free parking and a restaurant on the grounds. Visitors should check on seasonal opening hours as the site is closed on Tuesdays in the off-season, January through March and on some public holidays. The museum is also well worth a look for its Tiffany displays. Also, check out the Paige typesetter. The latter was a crackpot invention Twain thought would revolutionize the printing industry. It didn't and he lost a fortune. To pay his debts he had to go on lecture tours to earn the money to stave off his creditors. Next door is another literary landmark. Harriet Beecher Stowe, the author of Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), lived at 77 Forest Street. Her famous book was a powerful anti-slavery influence in the years before the American Civil War of the early 1860s. Less elaborate then the Twain House, her Victorian mansion is worth a visit. From our perspective today the Twain House is a reminder of an important literary context. The famous works about Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer in the pre-Civil War American South along the Mississippi River were written as reminiscences many years later in this New England town. By contrast Twain's time-travelling tale about the modern Connecticut Yankee who goes back to the middle ages has a clear Hartford dimension. In the story the hero knows how to make firearms and employs his mechanical skills in his various medieval adventures. Twain picked up his background weapons information from workers at the Colt arms manufactory in Hartford. The factory is still there although temporarily closed to the public while it is in the process of restoration. A visit to Mark Twain House in Hartford is a most rewarding experience. /Fred Donnelly teaches at UNBSJ./ ------------------------------ To contact the SISSON list administrator, send an email to SISSON-admin@rootsweb.com. To post a message to the SISSON mailing list, send an em ail to SISSON@rootsweb.com. __________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to SISSON-request@rootsweb.com with the word "unsubscribe" without the quotes in the subject and the body of the email with no additional text. End of SISSON Digest, Vol 3, Issue 65 *************************************