George Washington visited Westport (then part of Norwalk) at least 3 times.
In 1780 he is said to have discussed war strategy with the Marquis de Lafayette and Comte de Rochambeau at the Disbrow Tavern (where Christ & Holy Trinity Church is today). He returned twice in 1789 as president, coming and going on an inspection tour of the Northeast. He spent 1 night at the Marvin Tavern — located on the Post Road, opposite King’s Highway South — but did not have a bang-up time. In his diary, he called it “not a good house.”
A plaque commemorating one of those visits — dedicated in 1932, on the bicentennial of the Father of Our Country’s birth — was the subject of last week’s Photo Challenge. (Click here to see.)
I was pretty sure at least a few readers would guess the wrong tavern: Marvin’s “not good” one.
But every one who knew it was a tavern nailed it. The old Disbrow site is where the plaque rests — 246 years after Washington’s visit, and 94 years after it was dedicated.
Congratulations to Todd Ehrlich, Pat Saviano, Andrew Colabella, Morley Boyd, Seth Schachter, Wendy Schaefer, John Lisée, Amy Schaefer, Jonathan McClure, Janet Navon and Matt McGrath. You know your history!
But do you know the site of another historical marker? This one is not Washington-related. It’s from 1806 — 7 years after he died.
If you know where in Westport you’d see this, click “Comments” below.
(Photo/Andrew Colabella)
(Every Sunday, “06880” hosts this Photo Challenge. We challenge you too to support your hyper-local blog. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)
Jo Fuchs Luscombe — a force of nature who, in a lifetime of work and volunteer efforts, accomplished everything from 5 terms in the Connecticut House of Representatives (including minority whip) and Westport’s 3rd selectwoman, to leadership (and boots-on-the-ground) service in nearly every major organization in town — died last weekend. She was 91.
An official obituary has not yet been released. But in 2017, “06880” hailed her as one of our first Unsung Heroes. I wrote:
If you’ve been in Westport for any length of time, you’ve probably heard — and met — Jo Fuchs Luscombe.
She’s been involved in every aspect of life here — politics, education, community service. If it needs doing, Jo has done it.
But how many people know her back story?
A Dallas native, she was just a year old when her father — an oilman — moved the family to Venezuela. Jo grew up speaking Spanish — and gaining an important, real-world view of life.
She went to boarding school and college in Texas, headed to Katherine Gibbs secretarial school, got married at 19 and had a child at 20.
Jo Fuchs Luscombe
Her husband was in oil too, so they headed to Libya. Jo learned Italian there, and was once more immersed in a very different culture.
In 1969, the family moved back to the US. Her boys were 13 and 10.
In her mid-30s, Jo and her husband divorced. Encouraged by Rev. Dana Forrest Kennedy, she threw herself into every aspect Christ & Holy Trinity Church. She became president of the Women’s Guild, served on the vestry, and ran fundraisers.
She got interested too in the Westport Historical Society. Jo was a driving force behind the acquisition and restoration of Wheeler House — owned at the time by her church — as the organization’s headquarters.
In 1980, Jo was asked to fill out an unexpired term on the Zoning Board of Appeals. Public speaking did not come easily. But — as with everything else in her life — she worked to master it.
She won a full term on her own, then was appointed to the vacant post of 3rd selectman.
In 1986, Jo headed up her friend and fellow Westporter Julie Belaga’s campaign for governor.
Jo’s next step was the state House of Representatives. She served 5 terms — from 1987 to ’97 — and rose to Republican minority whip.
Retirement from state politics did not slow her down. As a member of Westport’s School Building Committee, she helped oversee 5 major construction and renovation projects (including the new Staples High School).
Jo Fuchs Luscombe (Photo courtesy of Westport Woman’s Club)
Remarriage did not slow her down either. Jo has been president of the Westport Woman’s Club (where she helped run major events like the art show), and is active in Westport Rotary, Greens Farms Garden club, and countless others.
As a longtime Westport Family YMCA board member, she helped shepherd the new building on its long, torturous journey from downtown to Mahackeno.
Her husband John says there is one reason she accomplishes so much: “She doesn’t sleep.”
There’s one more thing: Jo Fuchs Luscombe is one of the nicest, most always-smiling people you’ll ever meet.
Congratulations, Jo. And thanks from all of us, for all you’ve done in so many ways.
(Hat tip: Bobbie Herman)
Cards can be sent to Jo’s son, Edward Fuchs: 52 St. James Drive, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418. A full obituary will be published when available.
Over 130 Westporters (and friends) had a great time yesterday, at our 2nd annual “Historic Homes of 06880” house tour.
In spectacular fall weather, they toured 4 fascinating properties.
Ed Gerber’s 1764 saltbox on Cross Highway was once the home of George Hand Wright, a founder of Westport’s artists’ colony. Ed proudly showed off his restoration work, which earned a Westport Preservation Award, and a spot on the National Register of Historic Places.
Dan and Nicole Donovan’s 1870 Queen Anne-style farmhouse on Maple Avenue South earned raves for its imaginative restoration, including a welcoming kitchen (where their 6 children gather when they’re all home), and a wine cellar that’s been converted into a pub.
Around the corner on Greens Farms Road, Al and Chris DiGuido’s 1860 Colonial’s renovations were on display. The 4 fireplaces, mahogany ceilings and rooftop balcony competed with the full bar and entertainment center upstairs, complemented by Al’s extensive collection of sports memorabilia.
The fourth house, at 296 Compo Road South, is new construction — a future historic home. Architectural designer Michael Greenberg, builder Peter Greenberg of Able Construction, and owner Kim and Niv Harizman described the work they’ve done, and showed off their open floor plan.
Thanks to the owners who opened their homes; to our friends at KMS Team at Compass, who sponsored the event and made it extra fun; to “06880” board members and Staples Service League of Boys who provided support, and of course all who attended.
Dan Donovan turned a 6,000-bottle wine cellar in his 1870 home into a pub.
Frank Sisson writes: “While I commend the increasing attention being given to bikers’ rights and safety, I wonder if this new sign — one of several I noticed recently that have gone up on Cross Highway near Wakeman Park — was fully thought out.
“It sounds good in principle. But some bikers — particularly younger ones — are likely to take it very literally and ride their bikes in the center of the lane, assuming that vehicles behind them will just have to match their much slower pace.
“I have a feeling that vehicles like this one — not to mention the many impatient tailgating drivers we all encounter in this area — may not ‘get it.”
(Photos/Frank Sisson)
“I fear that our younger bikers will take these new traffic signs too trustingly, and assume that traffic will obey them, but that much of the driving public will not. Wouldn’t the establishment of an official ‘bike lane’ be a much better approach to biker rights and safety?”
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Congratulations to Peter Stern.
Last week, Peloton named the 1990 Staples High School graduate as its new CEO. He takes over in January.
Stern has broad experience managing digital products. He currently serves as president of Ford Integrated Services, overseeing subscription offerings like BlueCruise, Pro Intelligence, and connectivity and security initiatives.
Previously, he co-founded Apple Fitness+, and held significant positions at other major companies, including Time Warner Cable.
Click here for a story from CEO Today. Click here for an “06880” story on Stern from 2019.
Peter Stern (Photo courtesy of Peloton)
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Westport artistw Janine Brown, Jay Petrow and Janet Slom, plus former Westporter Jocelyn Braxton Armstrong, will participate in Bridgeport’s 19th annual American Fabrics Arts Building Open Studio event November 9 and 10 (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.).
The weekend includes art sales, music, and a raffle of original art. Proceeds aid 4 local charities, and food and clothing donations will be accepted for Bridgeport Rescue Mission.
The English choral group Gesualdo Six makes its Westport debut with a program of polyphonic English Motets this Sunday (November 10, 5 p.m., Christ & Holy Trinity Church).
The program will be followed by a buffet and reception, with a chance to meet the musicians before they head back to Europe.
Tickets are available by clicking here, and at the door.
And finally … jazz trumpeter/arranger/composer/record producer Quincy Jones died yesterday in California. He was 91.
He has the third-highest total of Grammy Awards won by a single person (28 — behind Beyoncé’s 32 and Georg Solti is second with 31.) He received honorary degrees from Harvard, Princeton, Juilliard, the New England Conservatory, the Berklee School of Music and many other institutions, along with a National Medal of Arts.
(“06880” is your hyper-local source for news, events, history, profiles and much more. If you enjoy our work, please make a tax-deductible contribution by clicking here. Thank you!)
Dick Fincher — a longtime Westporter with a quiet passion for the town, and who served it in roles ranging from Tree Board chair, and Earthplace and Staples Tuition Grants board member to Christ & Holy Trinity Church vestryman — died on Monday. He was 86.
His family says:
The Fincher family lost their hero on October 28. Richard “Dick” Fincher enjoyed 86 wonderous trips around the sun.
The Indiana sand dunes, on the shores of Lake Michigan, were his playground.
Raised by 2 adoring uncles and a fiercely protective grandmother. All provided love, strength and a strong set of values, while at the same time imbuing Dick with a lifetime love of all things natural.
High school was spent at Benlippen in Asheville, North Carolina, where he excelled both academically and in sports. Dick was offered a basketball scholarship by Indiana State, and a soccer scholarship to Wheaton College in Illinois.
Wheaton won out. Dick played soccer, and captained his team to an NCAA championship his senior year.
Their first night at Wheaton, Dick met Dorothy “Dottie” Skeoch at a freshman mixer. Their friendship extended into an adventurous 63-year marriage.
Dick Fincher
An ROTC commitment took Dick and Dottie to Fort Lee, Virginia for a Quartermaster School assignment. There, among other commitments, Dick was asked to form and coach the post soccer team.
After completing his military assignment, Dick joined Continental Can Company. For the next 20 years he saw the world.
He then founded his own consulting and recruiting company, which lasted for the next 20 years.
Upon retirement, unable to sit in a hammock, Dick began carving and hand painting cedar fishing lures, which he sold from the Caribbean to Hawaii.
In 1969, this became Dick’s town. He immersed himself in everything Westport.
In addition to Earthplace, the Lillian Wadsworth Arboretum, Staples Tuition Grants, and Christ & Holy Trinity Church, Dick could be found on the sidelines cheering Staples High School soccer games, and attending town meetings where he believed he could make a difference.
Dick Fincher, at the entrance to the Wadsworth Arboretum (corner of Stonybrook Road and Woodside Lane).
His Old Hill neighborhood became his world. He championed formation of the Lillian Wadsworth Arboretum, monitored cars speeding through stop signs, gave advice, cared for folks in dark clothes walking the narrow streets, and worked endless hours in his yard, sharing the abundance of his garden with neighbors.
Seeing and visiting with neighbors, feeding his many birds, sitting on his front porch or strolling with his dog Gunner were the highlights of his day.
Summers found Dick captaining his boat on Long Island Sound, fishing for stripers and blues, and running lobster pots with his boys.
In his wake he leaves Dottie, his beloved sons Rick, Doug (Tracy) and Scott (Julie), 10 adored grandchildren (with a great-grandchild on the way), and many cousins, nieces and nephews whom he loved.
A celebratory service is planned for Christ & Holy Trinity Church on December 28.
For many years, he was an international banker. Then came his non-profit work, as CEO of Homes with Hopes and Goodwill of Western and Northern Connecticut.
Now he’s moderator of the Representative Town Meeting (RTM) — our non-partisan legislative body he has served on since 2007. That’s in addition to all his other volunteer efforts (Positive Directions, Christ & Holy Trinity Church, and much more).
It’s hard to condense that all into half an hour, but Jeff and I had an informative, intriguing conversation the other day at the Westport Library. Why does he do it? How does he do it? What’s it all mean for our town, today and tomorrow?
Click below for some fascinating insights on the RTM, and all of us who live here.
(Podcasts are just a part of “06880.” Please click here to support your hyper-local blog.)
Last week’s Presidents Day Photo Challenge fooled some of our most historic-minded Westporters.
Sure, in 1775 George Washington stopped (and slept) at the Disbrow Tavern, the site of the present-day Christ & Holy Trinity Episcopal Church. He returned 5 years later.
A plaque marks the spot, by the elm tree where Church Lane meets Myrtle Avenue. But that’s not the marker that Kathie Motes Bennewitz’s image showed. (Click here to see.)
A similar plaque is partially hidden near the Christ & Holy Trinity (and Assumption Church) cemetery, on Kings Highway North. It’s across from the grassy area by Old Hill Road that, in Revolutionary times, served as a militia training and parade ground.
Elaine Marino, Bob Grant, Michael Calise and Morley Boyd all knew the correct location of this plaque.
Elaine also pointed out — to my great embarrassment — this was a previous Photo Challenge, in July 2018. (I really should read “06880,” right?)
During the Washington Bi-Centennial Celebration in 1932, the Compo Hill Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution placed a bronze plaque at the base of the tree.
The plaque on Kings Highway does not indicate who placed it there.
The downtown plaque is more weather-beaten than its cemetery counterpart. It says: “George Washington stopped for refreshments at this tavern, June 28, 1775.” It also has the bicentennial dates: “1732-1932.”
That Disbrow Tavern visit — and the next — were not the only 2 times Washington stopped (and slept) here. As president, he spent the night of November 11, 1789 at Captain Ozias Marvin’s tavern, at what is now the north side of Post Road West, opposite Kings Highway South.
Sarah Marvin and her daughters cooked up a presidential feast: loaves of brown bread and pies, vegetables from their farm, huge roasts.
Yet Washington asked for only a bowl of bread and milk. To add insult to injury, he wrote in his diary: It was “not a good house, though the people of it were disposed to do all they could to accommodate me.”
No matter. For years thereafter, Marvin Tavern was known as the Washington Inn.
But enough about yesterday. Here is today’s Photo Challenge. if you know where in Westport you would see it, click “Comments” below.
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