Tag: Canton

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All Things Connecticut New Print Releases The American Northeast

Canton Greening Over

Yankee Farmlands № 64 (Farm in Canton, Connecticut)
“Yankee Farmlands № 64”
Barns and pasture beside wooded hill during springtime, Canton, Connecticut
© 2016 J. G. Coleman

Barns nestle into the bottom of a broad ridge in Northern Connecticut, the adjacent pastures already thick with grasses by early May. Woodlands on the hillside have taken to “greening over” as recent rains nourish buds and emerging leaves.

In modern times, Canton is a prosperous township of nearly 9,000 in the Farmington River Valley. Even as early as the mid-1800s, the renowned Collinsville ax factory brought growth and industrial might in the southern reaches of the town.

But the earliest settlers of Canton, said to have arrived there in the 1740s, didn’t fare quite so well. So toilsome were their efforts at building a life in this hilly, wooded frontier that they saw fit to name their founding village “Suffrage”. One can only imagine that, for these struggling pioneers, a time when their hamlet would enjoy comfort and convenience seemed impossibly distant.

Purchase a Fine Art Print or Inquire About Licensing

Click here to visit my landing page for “Yankee Farmlands № 64” to buy a beautiful fine art print or inquire about licensing this image.

Want to See More?

Be sure to check out all of the work in my on-going Yankee Farmlands project.

Categories
All Things Connecticut New Print Releases The American Northeast

Luminous Collinsville

Luminous Collinsville (Dams beside the old Collins Ax Factory, Collinsville, Canton, Connecticut)
“Luminous Collinsville”
Dams at the old Collins Axe Factory, Collinsville, Canton, Connecticut
© 2016 J. G. Coleman

In “Luminous Collinsville” (photo at top), just one the pieces I recently released featuring the historic Collins Ax Factory, mist rises from the Farmington River as it courses through old mill dams in the post-industrial factory town of Collinsville, Connecticut. Stricken by days of brutally cold winter weather, waters behind the spillway are glazed over with ice and snow-capped bedrock punctuates the river below.

Factory Town, Autumn Hush (Old Collins Axe Factory on the Farmington River, Collinsville, Canton, Connecticut)
“Factory Town, Autumn Hush”
Old Collins Axe Factory on the Farmington River, Collinsville, Canton, Connecticut
© 2016 J. G. Coleman

When the Collins Ax Factory opened as a modest mill on the banks of the Farmington River in the 1820s, nobody could’ve predicted the remarkable success that lay ahead. Over the next century, as its fame grew and business soared, the company expanded its facilities at the site, brought in rail lines, built bridges over the river, constructed extensive dams for waterwheels and hydroelectric plants and served as the hub for a community that is still called “Collinsville” to this day. My piece, “Factory Town, Autumn Hush” (above), portrays the main factory building beside a large mill pond.

Gates of Collinsville (Dam regulators at the old Collins Axe Factory on the Farmington River, Collinsville, Canton, Connecticut)
“Gates of Collinsville”
Dam gate hoists at the old Collins Axe Factory on the Farmington River, Collinsville, Canton, Connecticut
© 2016 J. G. Coleman

But even this industrial giant wasn’t immune to changing times. First came the advent of the chainsaw, which diminished the demand for axes. Market competition steadily increased right up until 1955 when a massive flood made matters worse by destroying the rail lines that serviced the sprawling complex. By the 1960s the factory was shuttered, ending a 140-year legacy of continuous operation that turned out millions of the finest axes and machetes that money could buy.

Purchase a Fine Art Print or Inquire About Licensing

Visit my landing pages for “Luminous Collinsville”, “Gates of Collinsville” and “Factory Town, Autumn Hush” to buy a beautiful fine art print or inquire about licensing these images.

Want to See More?

Be sure to check out all of my work from the old Collins Ax Factory and Historic Collinsville.

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Events and Awards

2011 Granby Land Trust Juried Art Show

You can be among the first to see J. G. Coleman’s print, “Old Dish Mill Falls on Jim Brook“, a fine-art landscape photograph taken at Roaring Brook Nature Center in Canton, Connecticut. The work will be on display through the month of November at J. Vallee Brunelle Fine Art & Framing in Granby, Connecticut. “Old Dish Mill Falls on Jim Brook” is only one of many works that will be on display for Celebrating Art in Nature, the 2011 Granby Land Trust Annual Juried Art Show.

Celebrating Art in Nature is a small art show that features paintings, drawings, photography and 3D works inspired by nature and landscapes of the Farmington River Valley region. The opening reception for the showing is on Thursday, November 3, 2011 between 5:00 PM and 8:00 PM.

The showing will run from November 3, 2011 through December 1, 2011 and every piece on display is available for purchase. The Granby Land Trust will receive 40% of the proceeds for every work purchased at J. Vallee Brunelle, which will help them continue to preserve Granby’s natural heritage (a portion of those proceeds will also go towards supporting the event).

Feel free to learn more about this event by visiting the Granby Land Trust website or the J. Vallee Brunelle Fine Art & Framing website.