Whigville

I love that there's a section of Burlington called Whigville. It's most likely named after a vocal group of residents who belonged to the Whig Party. (I say most likely; the town's website says "reputedly." I also love that there's even the slightest bit of uncertainty there, because what else could it be named for? A settlement of wig-makers who couldn't spell?)

I went to Whigville and I didn't really know what to do with myself. I mean, there are no Whigs anymore (at least I think there aren't) and the area is pretty residential. So I found the Grange Hall. And I thought, this is probably how they rolled in the 19th century. Come to an area you don't know, feel lost and unsure, find the grange hall.

The absolute best thing about Whigville is that before it was called Whigville, it was known as Poverty Hollow. As a freelancer visiting the area right around Tax Day, I felt like I fit right in.

Burlington 2 for 1

This diminutive building jumped out at me the first time I saw it. At the time I couldn't stop, but I've had "Burlington Brick ??? Route 4" written on a piece of notebook paper for years.

When I finally looked into it, I found that the structure was once the town records building and was was built in 1906. It now belongs to the Chamber of Commerce.

Route 4 is a very busy road, and this building stands right by a curve. People actually stopped to let me run across, which just blows my general view of western Connecticut right out of the water. (In other meta-blogging news, if you zoom in on this picture you can see me taking the photo, reflected in the window.)

And while I was there I found this, which had no plaque or sign, but if it's not a schoolhouse I'll eat my hat. And all my hats are knit winter caps, except for one rather large and plastic-y spring rain cloche, so none of my options would be pleasant.