The Dwight E. Newberry Bird Collection is an assortment of Woodland, Meadow and Marsh preserved birds. The Newberry Collection of some 117 specimens includes a four-foot Great Blue Heron, bitterns, rails, warblers, owls, ducks, hawks, eagles and song birds, among others. In addition, Newberry’s collection of birds’ eggs is on display. Most of the species on display still use the local meadows as flyway or habitat. It is believed that this collection was created in a span of only a few years in the late 1800s when Newberry was a young man, and was displayed at the Newberry home on Main Street until being moved to The Wood. Stories passed down tell that no bird was killed for the creation of the collection; dead birds were brought to the young Newberry.
There is one common bird not included in this collection, as it was not indigenous to the area at the time. Can you guess which species it is?
The Bayard Pelton Bird Collection (ca. 1850-1870) consists of several mounted birds, smaller birds in cases, and larger birds on top of the cases. Loaned to The Wood by Helen R. Pelton in the 1970s, the Pelton Bird Collection was mounted by Eli Hayes (1812-1893) with his nephew, John Melson Alexander. Mr. Hayes, originally from the Long Hill area, was at the time living with his sister, Lucy Hayes Clark, and her daughter, Amanda Clark Pease, in the Pease home at 1042 Main Street. Helen Risley Pelton (Mrs. Bayard Pelton), whose grandmother was an Alexander, eventually owned the birds and placed them for display at Wood. The rod through the body of the American Bittern and the pins holding its toes in the position show the usually hidden workings of the taxidermist’s art.
The Hartford Audubon Society‘s collection of bird books is housed here along with their society’s records. The Hartford Audubon Society was founded in 1909 (at 809 Main Street) as the Hartford Bird Study Club, a nonprofit organization. The purpose of the Society is to foster and promote public interest in the conservation of our wildlife and other natural resources, and the study and protection of birds.
One of the Hartford Audubon Society sanctuaries, Station 43, is located nearby The Wood, just off Main Street. Named for one of the Main Street trolley stops, it consists of about 150 acres of shallow pond and marsh, bordered on the west by 400 acres of meadows and active farmland and on the east by 100 acres of wooded higher ground. Located below the 20 ft elevation contour in the Connecticut River flood plain, this is one of the most productive inland bird watching sites in Connecticut. Ten Endangered, nine Threatened and nine Special Concern bird species have been reported here, among 229 total bird species.
