Connecticut College Digital Commons @ Connecticut College Linda Lear Center for Special Collections & Alumni News Archives Spring 1977 Connecticut College Alumni Magazine, Spring 1977 Connecticut College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.conncoll.edu/alumnews Recommended Citation Connecticut College, "Connecticut College Alumni Magazine, Spring 1977" (1977). Alumni News. 202. https://digitalcommons.conncoll.edu/alumnews/202 This Magazine is brought to you for free and open access by the Linda Lear Center for Special Collections & Archives at Digital Commons @ Connecticut College. It has been accepted for inclusion in Alumni News by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Connecticut College. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The views expressed in this paper are solely those of the author. The Connecticut College Alumni Magazine • 4 EDITORIAL BOARn Allen T. Carroll '73 Editor (R.F.D. 3, EXECUTIVE BOARD OF THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION, Colchester, Ct. 06415), Marion Vilbert Clark'24 Cassandra Goss Simonds '55 President / Mariana Parcells Class Notes Editor, Elizabeth Damerel Gongaware'26 Wagoner '44 Vice-President / Britta [o Schein McNemar '67 Assistant Editor, Cassandra Cess Simonds '55, Louise Secretary / Platt Townend Arnold '64 Treasurer Stevenson Andersen '41 ex officio Directors-at-Large, Helen Haase Johnson '66, Ann Godsey Official publication of the Connecticut College Alumni Stinnett '56, Sara Rowe Heckscher '69, Michael Farrar Association. All publication rights reserved. Contents reprinted 73/ Alumni Trustees, Virginia Golden Kent '35, Jane Smith. only by permission of the editor. Published by-the Connecticut Moody '49, Joan Jacobson Kronick '46 / Chairman of Alumm College Alunmi Association at Sykes Alumni Center, Connecticut Giving, Richard F. Cohn '75 / Chairman of Nominating College, New London, Conn, four times a year in Winter, Committee, Joann Walton Leavenworth'56 / Chairman of Spring, Summer, Fall. Second-class postage paid at Finance Committee, Peter Paris 74 / Chairman of Clubs New London, Ct. 06320. Application to mail at additional entry Committee, Sue Weinberg Mindlin '53 / Chairman of Classes Post Office pending. Send form 3579 to Sykes Alumni Center, Committee, Anne Godsey Stinnett'56 / Chairman of Programs Connecticut College, New London, Ct. 06320. AAC member Committee, Katharine Powell '74 / Executive Director, Louise Stevenson Andersen '41 / Young Alumni Representatives, Laud Hollister '76, Andrew Hemingway 76. Communications to any of the above may be addressed in care of the Alumni Office, Connecticut College, New London Ct. 06320 The Connecticut ColI~ Alumni Magazine VOLUME 54 NUMBER 3 SPRING 1977 The renovation of Union Station Born again 3 Claire Dale The fight for preservation 5 Lisa Dyess '76 The College All-campus blow-out 8 Seth Greenland '77 The Arboretum 10 Research opportunities/William A. Niering 11 12 )-~ Breeding bird studies/Gregory Butcher '77 / Vegetation changes/Harold Hemond 13 Painted turtle/Alma Bolland 14 Spotted salamander/Bruce Hunter 15 Tidal marsh dynamics/Charles T. Roman 17 Looking at the Past/Harold D. [uli 18 The shaping of the Land/Richard H. Goodwin 20 Growth of the green belt/R.H. Goodwin 22 24 Grandma's house Mark Spina '79 26 Ms. identification Richard Birdsall 28 Letters 29 Class notes , I, Born again After decades of neglect, H.H. Richardson's massive Union Station in New London has undergone a thorough and sensitive renovation-but only after a 13-year struggle against demolition After acquainting myself with pertinent facts to the total By Claire Dale situation, I determined to try to bring together those who knew the station as an architectural landmark, and those Thirteen years after Union Station had been slated for who insisted it had to be able to pay for itself. demolition as part of the Winthrop Urban Renewal project, I had informed myself about the purposes and policies of Ada Louise Huxtable, well-known architecture critic for the Redevelopment Project from its beginning in 1962. It The New York Times, announced the forthcoming Open was obvious that an alternative plan which was compre- House celebrating the building's renovation with the state- hensive-adaptive re-use design, practical of execution, and ment, "in New London the battle was not uphill, but per- economically sound-was required. If I was limited in back- pendiculari" ground, I had the humility to go to the best professionals I Mrs. Claire Dale, whose husband is Chairman of the could find when I needed information or guidance, and Music Department at Connecticut College, had acted as a which they invariably gave in good measure. catalyst to save the station for the last five years of the High points included forming the non-profit organization, battle. Her impression was more like being on a roller- Union Railroad Station Trust, in 1973 with eleven well- coaster. • • known local professional men. They quickly contracted • with Anderson Notter Associates of Boston for an economic No one was more surprised than myself when I became the feasibility study and potential adaptive re-use design. This champion of Union Station. I am a pianist, without any architectural firm had established an enviable reputation education or experience in architecture, art history, or city on similar rehabilitation projects. planning, let alone as a private developer. But in my own When Anderson Notter determined to become the de- mind, I could equate saving this building to performing a veloper and later the owner of the station, [ was greatly en- musical manuscript which would otherwise never be heard. couraged about the fate of the building. The main thing I reacted to in 1971 was the contempt and The lowest point came a full year later when the Boston arrogance which the Redevelopment Agency was showing firm was unexpectedly dismissed by the Redevelopment to eminent art historians. It didn't seem right for profes- Agency. AMTRAK had agreed to a 20-year lease for sionals in any field to be treated with such scorn. 3 IIANDOLPH LANCENBACH, IIICHAIID WELLINC (ABOVE) , $900,000, and mortgage financing had been procured to Charles Shain, former President of Conn. College, served meet the total $750,000 cost of renovating the building. on the Board of Advisors for Union Railroad Station Trust. Upon further review of their financial statement the agency This prestigious group of professionals, for the most part reversed its position and agreed to sell the building for re- from outside New London, demonstrated widespread sup- habilitation. port for the effort. Other high points were the signing of the deed of sale Mrs. Ruby Turner Morris, Professor Emeritus of Eco- and the Open House held a year later, in July 1976. The nomics, vigorously championed the station's virtues as a station was packed with local and area people, visitors from City Councillor, and later as Mayor. In the latter role she Boston, New York, and Washington, and hundreds of bal- was able to happily proclaim "Union Station Day" on July loons saying "Union Station Lives!" 29, 1976, for the Open Hoose, The inevitable comment by persons entering the refur- At this moment Margi Cohen '77, an Art History major, bished station today is "I never thought it could look like is compiling a chronological scrapbook of clippings demon- this!" It is colorful, light, airy, spacious and there are people strating the ups and downs of the preservation battle, waiting in attractive lounges on two levels. AMTRAK re- which will become part of the archives of local history at ports a 25% increase in passengers using the station since the Connecticut College library. last fall due to the comeback of the trains, the improved In 1976 the Union Railroad Station Trust merged with station, and the severe winter weather. another like-minded preservation organization, New Lon- The ceiling beams, window frames, and original wain- don Landmarks, to gain strength through unity. Promoting scoting have all been stripped to their natural wood color historic preservation in many ways throughout the town, adding a handsome texture and highlighting a feature from the combined group is currently focusing on Bank Street the past. and Fort Trumbull as development projects. Public pro- The exterior has been restored as nearly as possible to its grams and newsletters are essentially educational in nature. original appearance. Surprisingly enough, little more than The trust will soon complete a 2O·minute color motion cleaning of the bricks was required because the structure picture film chronicling the preservation fight and docu- was so sound. The variety in the brick patterning is endlessly menting the "before and after" of the station. Our hope is fascinating. that the film will encourage others to take on "perpendicu- There are two prime tenants at the present time. AM- lar" preservation challenges as a consequence. TRAK has ticket and baggage facilities on the first floor Again to quote Ada Louise Huxtable, "The way to lose a with a main waiting room in the basement area created by a heritage completely is one building at a time." large cut in the first floor and an attractive new stairway. The South half of the second floor is occupied by Morri- son-Knudsen in office space ingenuously designed for their use. New London is Morrison-Knudsen's regional office for their international construction business. Their home office is in Boise, Idaho. Negotiations are currently proceeding for a first-class restaurant which will occupy the remainder of the first floor space, including a newly-created balcony. Four kiosks in the main waiting room remain to be ten- anted, as well as the remainder of the second floor. Tourist- related shops are sought, such as car rental facilities tourist information services, travel agents, gift shops, and news- paper stands. My greatest personal satisfaction came on the occasion of th~. Open House in July 1976. The cross section of our city which .was there to celebrate the occasion represented a dram~tIc reversal of sentiment for almost everyone, most conspicuously members of the Redevelopment Agency and The New London Day newspaper.