Old Lyme Celebrates America 250
Old Lyme's America 250 Countdown celebrates America's semiquincentennial birthday,
the town's own history, and those who have lived in Old Lyme, both past and present.
To learn more about Old Lyme's America 250 Committee, see the Town webpage.
Follow our Town partners' America 250 events and activities, including by: The Old Lyme Historical Society; the PGN-OL Library; the Florence Griswold Museum; the Lyme Art Association; the Duck River Garden Club; the Lymes Senior Center; Lymes Youth Service Bureau; and the Old Lyme Cemetery Association.
Check out our
Calendar of Events.
Events will be added as they are announced.
Image: Tuck Independence Day Series #109.
July 4th Boy Drum Girl Horn Flag, circa 1910.
We are planning a Town Picnic for all Old Lyme residents on Sunday, July 5. The picnic takes place during the America's Potluck Celebration across the country. See all we have planned so far!
Mile Creek Road, Johnnycake Hill, Shore Road, Ferry Road -- These are just a few of the roadways in Old Lyme that Benjamin Franklin would have travelled in the mid-1700s. What sites would he recognize today?
Join Us in a Community Book Read
Together, we are reading historical fiction for our America 250 celebration! The OL-PGN Library is hosting along with the OL Historical Society and the Town’s America 250 Committee a “Community Read.” Join us in reading “Rise to Rebellion: A Novel of the American Revolution,” by Jeff Shaara, and then join us on Monday, July 6th at 6:30-7:30 pm for a book discussion. Copies of the book are available for loan at the library service desk, or can be purchased at your favorite bookseller. Register to be a part of the book discussion. Hosted by the Old Lyme PGN Library along with the Old Lyme Historical Society and the Town's America 250 Committee.
Over 25 quilt squares have been submitted to our
Community Quilt Making Project.
The finished quilt will be unveiled
at our Town Picnic.
Did you know in 1776 Old Lyme was part of a larger town simply known as 'Lyme?' During the time of the Revolutionary War, Lyme included Old Lyme, Salem, and East Lyme, in addition to what we know today as the Town of Lyme. Read more about how these four "ecclesiastical societies" broke off into separate towns in the 1800s in "Evolution of a Place Name."
Ezra Stiles, Map of Lyme Parishes. 1768. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University
Learn about the Arbor Day planting of a descendant of the Charter Oak, in honor of America's 250th.
Old Lyme joined the Nation in "Two Lights for Tomorrow." Commemorating the 250th anniversary of Paul Revere's famous ride, many residents, business owners, and nonprofits displayed two lights in their window the evening of Friday, April 18. Read more about Lyme's call to action during that fateful week 250 years ago.
Learn more about our local trailblazers and history
Benjamin Franklin Surveys the Post Road Here
It was late January 1755 when Benjamin Franklin crossed the Rhode Island border into Connecticut to survey New England’s Lower Post Road. The weather was unusually warm, as were his thoughts for a certain young woman he met in Boston, one Miss Catharine Ray whom he called “my Katy.” ​
George Washington's Visit Here
in April, 1776
Did George Washington spend the evening of April 10th 1776 dancing up a storm and impressing the ladies with his minuet and cotillion moves at Old Lyme’s Peck Tavern? Legend has it that he did. Had he spent that day examining America’s first submarine, the Turtle, being put through its paces at Poverty Island in the Connecticut River? Circumstances say it was both possible and likely. What we do know for certain is that General Washington graced our town with his presence 250 years ago, and the story of that day has lived on in the collective memory of our citizens ever since.
​
​
​​
​
Katharine Ludington: Fulfilling the Promise of the American Revolution
Katharine knew that it was not enough for women to have the right to vote: If women were to participate in civic life as equals they must also understand the mechanics of government, become familiar with policy issues, and learn how operate the levers of power. In short, they must make up for lost time and become familiar with a world that men had heretofore ruled exclusively.
Reverend Stephen Johnson: Lyme's Radical Cleric
“The shot heard ‘round the world”, fired at Lexington in 1775, is typically how we mark the beginning of the American Revolution. But wars don’t arise out of thin air—especially wars undertaken against the most powerful imperial army in the world. Before war comes ideology, and few writers were more important in developing the rhetoric of revolution than Lyme’s own Reverend Stephen Johnson.
Before the Lymes: The Land of the Nehantics
Walking down Lyme Street on a beautiful autumn day, you might consider that this very lane was once a footpath for the Nehantic People—not just hundreds, but thousands of years ago. Archaeologists have established evidence of their early settlement across the area, including at the rock shelters in the Town’s Ames Family Open Space.
The King’s Attorney and the Minister: Old Lyme’s Heroes at the Battle of Bunker Hill
​The men of Lyme had barely returned home from Lexington before they had to march right back to Boston to face the British at Bunker Hill. On April 26, 1775, just days after the opening skirmish of the Revolutionary War, the Connecticut General Assembly raised six regiments for defense of New England.
Lymes' Militia Men Answer the Call to Arms: April 1775
TO ARMS! TO ARMS! THE WAR HAS BEGUN!
So was the cry brought to our Post Road in 1775 by Minuteman Israel Bissell as he rode from Watertown, Massachusetts to New York City, informing patriots along his route that British had fired upon American militia men at Lexington, and battle was engaged. The Revolution had begun.
Welcome to Old Lyme
Welcome to Old Lyme, a small, historic town on the Connecticut coastline. We are known for our art galleries and beaches, and have so much more. Whether you are thinking about relocating your home or business here, or just looking to visit for the afternoon, welcome! We are glad to have you.