Lunch and Learn – The Windsor Locks Canal: Yankee Enterprise and Irish Muscle

Virtual Presentation! 

Join us for a virtual presentation as J. Christopher Kervick discusses his compelling new book, The Windsor Locks Canal: Yankee Enterprise and Irish Muscle.  It is the story of human enterprise, ambition, invention, raw manpower, and the clash of cultures.

This uniquely American accomplishment could not have happened without the unlikely convergence of three social and economic groups, including the wealthy merchants who conceived and promoted the canal, the brilliant young civil engineers who designed it, and the over four hundred Irish immigrant laborers who toiled from dawn to dusk in often lethal conditions to forge a better life in America. The synergy of these distinct forces created the backbone of Connecticut’s first planned, water-powered industrial center, one that remains profitable to this day.

This virtual event is free and open to the public. Get tickets to receive the Zoom link.

Questions? Contact Jen Busa, Public Programs Coordinator at jbusa@connecticutmuseum.org.

About the Speaker:  J. Christopher Kervick is an instructor of local history at Mitchell College in New London, Connecticut. He recently completed three terms as First Selectman of his hometown of Windsor Locks, Connecticut, and, prior to that, served as a Connecticut Judge of Probate. His boyhood home was just three hundred yards west of the Windsor Locks Canal (originally known as the Enfield Falls Canal). In 2001, the State of Connecticut hired him to conduct a title search of the entire canal. The title search sparked his fascination with the story behind the canal, especially the plight of the over four hundred unidentified Irish immigrant laborers who built the canal, some of whom lost their lives in the effort.

To purchase a copy of J. Christopher Kervick’s new book, The Windsor Locks Canal: Yankee Enterprise and Irish Muscle, click here