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SILVERMINE TAVERN IS SUBJECT OF AN
AWARD WINNING ESSAY
By AMRITA DHINDSA
Hour Staff Writer
NORWALK - For two fourth-graders from Norwalk, the
Silvermine Tavern and the Ascension Beach and Pool
Club are places that visitors should put on their
must-visit lists.
Both students - Reed Carter from All Saints Catholic
School and Matthew Ederle from Marvin Elementary
School - made the recommendations to a panel of
judges at the 10th annual Connecticut essay contest
by outlining their favorite places to visit in
Connecticut. Carter, who won first prize in
Division One at the Mark Twain Museum Center on
Tuesday, described the Silvermine Tavern as
"unique," for its "live jazz, great food, and a
beautiful view over the river," for promoting
activities that bring the community together during
holidays, and its historical value and proximity to
Silvermine Art Guild, Silvermine market, the old
pink house (that's not pink anymore), a glass house
and the llama farm.
"There are lots of great stories like when a drunk
guy blew up the country store on the Fourth of
July,' wrote Carter in his essay. "You can also see
a little bit of the tavern in a movie called "The
Object of My Affection" with Jennifer Aniston. It
was filmed at the tavern a few years ago. The movie
producers had the tavern paint the old pink shutters
dark green and they never painted them back."
Carter's mother Wendy describes the 9-year old as
someone who is very creative, good at inventing
things, and telling stories.
"I'm so proud of him," said Wendy in a phone
interview. "He loves the tavern and gets very
excited about things."
Ederle won an honorable mention for his essay on the
Ascension Beach and Pool Club - for the "great view
of Long Island Sound, and at the same time, watch
your friends and children have the best time of
their life."
During the awards ceremony at the Mark Twain Museum
Center, Jennifer Aniskovich, executive director of
the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism,
and Susan Bysiewicz, secretary of state recognized
the 25 fourth graders for their writing skills.
The ceremony also featured an appearance by guest
author Patricia Rowland, Connecticut's first
lady,whose children's book "Marvelous Max, the
Mansion Mouse" was recently published.
"The annual essay contest is an excellent way for
students to put their thoughts into writing and
share their discoveries about Connecticut's great
cultural and tourism activities with others," said
Rowland, before dubbing all 25 students honorary
ambassadors of tourism.
Winners received award certificates and bags that
included admission tickets and souvenirs donated
from state attractions and companies. In addition,
each student received an autographed copy of
Rowland's new book.
A Unique Place in Connecticut
By Reed Carter
Ms. Iannazzo's class All Saints Catholic School 4th
Grade
If you ever want to visit a great place in
Connecticut, come to the Silvermine Tavern in
Norwalk. I think the Silvermine Tavern is very
unique. There are so many fun things to do. If you
like penny candy, live jazz, great food, and a
beautiful view over the river, Silvermine Tavern is
right for you. The best thing about the Silvermine
Tavern is when you get there you don't have to leave
because there are eight hotel rooms upstairs.
The Silvermine area got its name from early settlers
who came because people thought there was silver
here. Unfortunately, there never was the silver that
they had hoped. They stayed anyway and made a nice
village with a post office, grocery store, and the
tavern. There is a story that George Washington
visited the Silvermine Tavern once. He did not stay
there at night in case it was attacked. He stayed in
a small house nearby that was painted pink. People
say there is a secret underground tunnel from the
pink house to the tavern so Washington could escape
if he had to.
The Silvermine Tavern is made up of five buildings.
The tavern itself, the old mill by the waterfall,
the coach house (where they made alcohol during
prohibition), a gatehouse that has been made part of
the tavern, and the country store. The oldest tavern
buildings were once owned by Henry Guthrie, an
Englishman who arrived here in 1846. He operated a
shipyard and 3 waterpower mills along local rivers.
Since the 1950s, it has been owned by the Whitman
family.
There are lots of interesting places surrounding the
Silvermine Tavern. Like the Silvermine Art Guild,
Silvermine market, the old pink house (that's not
pink anymore), a glass house and of course the llama
farm. They are all easy to walk to from the tavern.
Don't think you have to leave the tavern to have
fun. It is filled with interesting antiques and old
tools hanging on all the walls. They have great
food, and the breakfast is the best. It is a buffet
so you can have all you want to eat. The sticky buns
are famous. Some nights they have jazz bands come in
and play. It is cool.
The Silvermine tavern is an important part of the
community. At Christmas, they have Santa come on an
old firetruck and hand out presents for the kids.
Everybody stands in the big parking lot and has hot
chocolate while they wait for Santa to come.
Hundreds of people stand around in the cold but
don't even mind it because they are all friends. You
have to see it to believe it.
If you want to see the tavern before you visit, you
can go to their website and learn all about the
history of Silvermine. There are lots of great
stories like when a drunk guy blew up the country
store on the Fourth of July. You can also see a
little bit of the tavern in a movie called "The
Object of My Affection" with Jennifer Aniston. It
was filmed at the tavern a few years ago. The movie
producers had the tavern paint the old pink shutters
dark green and they never painted them back.
Silvermine is a great place to visit. It is easy to
get to and you can even take the train from New York
City and get a cab ride to the tavern if you want.
It is quiet, peaceful, and fun and I can almost
promise there won't be any more explosions.
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