Jeff Mainville
Surprise!
Noah Webster Designed of our System of Government
(and a lot more)
Ever since Rotarian Gordon Bennett saved the Noah Webster House from destruction in 1960, the two organizations have had a close relationship.
Jeff took over the reins last year and has been exploring new ways to make the Noah Webster House and West Hartford Historical Society relevant. As it turns out, there's a significant portion of Mr. Webster's work that has not been publicized, as his American Dictionary and Blue Back Speller over shadowed everything else.
Jeff highlighted Webster's "Sketchbook of American Policy, " a work that influenced Hamilton, Adams, Franklin, Washington and others to develop a new system to succeed the Articles of Confederation. At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, the pamphlet was widely circulated and it provided the basis for our present system of government. Wow!
Extra, Extra! "Kid from West Hartford Makes it Big in Philadelphia!"
2026 is the United State's Semiquincentennial (250 years) and Jeff expects that this, and many other stories about Mr. Webster will be big stories.