For over two centuries, the Gay-Hoyt House has stood as a landmark on the Sharon Green. This exhibit presents stories of Ebenezer Gay, who built the Gay-Hoyt House at the outset of the American Revolution, and Anne Sherman Hoyt, who bequeathed the Gay-Hoyt House to the Sharon Historical Society in 1951. We hope you will enjoy reading these stories and viewing a sample of items from the Sharon Historical Society & Museum collection.
The Road to Women’s Suffrage: The Sharon Petition
On January 26, 1918, a group of twenty-one Sharon residents signed a petition delivered to the office of Connecticut Senator George P. McLean, urging him to “use your influence and cast your vote in favor of the Federal Amendment Bill.”
Visit this pop-up exhibition of archival materials from the Sharon Historical Society & Museum collection and view stories about Elizabeth Darling, Beatrice Fay, Katherine Hotaling, Frances Jewett, and Nina Juckett. The exhibit documents the business roles, community roles, and suffrage efforts of women who lived in Sharon.
Digital production and public access to A Closer Look at the Petition and the Women Who Signed It has been made possible through Connecticut Humanities by funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the federal CARES Act.
We gratefully acknowledge the following organizations and individuals for their contributions to these exhibitions:
The Sharon Historical Society & Museum Volunteer Research Team:
Marel Rogers, Myra Plescia, Linda Neiberg, Trisha Davisson, & Billy Saster
The Brandon Family
Connecticut Humanities
Connecticut State Library
Cornell University
Gunn Historical Museum, Washington, CT
Harriet Beecher Stowe Library, Hartford, CT
Harvard Library, Harvard University
Mr. Mort Kraus
Library of Congress
Private collection of Linda Neiberg
National Archives, National Archives Museum
Norfolk Historical Society, Norfolk, CT
Private collection of Doug Rick
Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University
Sharon Playhouse
Exhibition Design by: Whirlwind Creative