gunn historical museum

Don't miss this beautiful look at how WWI affected the town of Washington, CT. It's very personal, moving and respectful. With artifacts on loan from local residents and collectors, you get a sense of the incredible war effort this small town made. After a good introduction of how the war developed and how the US was eventually compelled to join the action, you walk through a recreation of a trench into what is a carefully arranged collection of war memorabilia, uniforms, equipment, medals, and a surprising collection of little useful things that went overseas with our boys. A second room is devoted to what stayed behind, and what the communities did to sustain themselves. The last room is the most moving as it contains letters from the front, sent home by the boys of Washington. Life size mannequins in genuine uniform around the room provide a presence of the past right into the present that is startling and real. Don't miss this, honestly, it's quite powerful. This exhibition won a well-deserved national award.

For a small local museum, the current World War I exhibit is worth seeing by those interested in the First World War and particularly about very small town participation -- in action and on the homefront -- in that war. An introductory video prepared by a museum volunteer is excellent.