New Haven Green

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Burial Ground or downtown green?  How about both.  New Haven, CT”s downtown green consisting of the lower and upper halves reportedly has between 5,000 and 10,000 buried bodies.  The plaque, shown to the left, is on the back of historic Center Church.  The church is built on pillars to allow for the headstones to remain in tact.  There are several hundred visible graves.  As for the green itself it was the communities active burial ground from the time New Haven was founded in 1638 until bout 150 years later.  At that time the time the majority of headstones were moved to Grove Cemetary but the remains lay at rest under the surface.

In 1637 a small contingent of Puritans arrived in what was later named New Haven and “wintered over”.  In 1638 about 500 Puritans from the Massachusetts Bay Colony arrived by boat and it was then that the city and green were permanently established.  The green was part of a well planned “grid system” for the city.

Like most comunities the green was the focal point of the community.  The militia, which later fought at Bunker Hill, would march here.  In addition it was the home for trade, social interaction recreation and more.

To the left is the Trinity Episcopal Church on the corner of Temple and Chapel Street.  It was the of the (3) houses of worship built in the early 1800’s and all are still utilized today.

Center Church, (First Church of Christ), is shown to the right. It proudly is situated on Temple Street between the (3) churches and on the lower east end of the upper green but just about right in the center of both the entire dual green area.  It is here, that in the basement, a cemetary replete with headstones still stands.  In the past the church has given weekly tours of this unique burial ground.

United Church of Christ occupies the corner of Elm and Temple Street on the upper greens north/east corner.

While photographing the downtown green I stumbled upon an active food line held to the rear of the Trinity Episcopal Church (on the green).  While soup kitchens have never been foreign to Connecticut communities a line this long at 2:30 in the afternoon is a bit unusual considering they started serving lunch at 12:00 noon.  The cross to the right lay against a truck adjacent to the soup line.  Where ther is God there is love.

To this day the green is certainly the focal point of the community.  It’s enjoyed by thousands throught the week.  Yales students will catch up on their reading or sun on the upper green during warm seasons.  Hurried office workers will use it as a short cut or just clear their head during lunch hour.  The homeless find this to be a place to meet up with friends and get away from the busy New Haven streets.  I myself have been coming here for over (30) years.  I’ve always found peace and calm here.  It’s been a place for me to log many a mile when I wanted to get some exercise in or simply to dream and forget my worries.

Being the 2nd largest city in Connecticut, (approx. 130,000 residents), and economically depressed the green, to me at least, has always appeared to be fairly crime free (at least during the day).  Twenty or thirty years ago I’d walk here at night and just wintessed one fist fight but it’s a different world today and I must admit I don’t frequent this area once the sun sets.

Here are some things I’ve witnessed over time during my love for this 16 acre, privately owned (yes privately owned) downtown district:

• Jazz Concerts
• Rock Concerts
• Christmas Concerts
• The City’s Christmas tree (shown in the slide show) which is brightly lit in the evening.
• Buses coming and going all week and weekend on Chapel, Temple and Elm Streets.
• Hordes of people waiting for the buses.
• Homeless people, sitting, sleeping, begging for food and money at times.  I must say I’ve been approached by those less fortunate than me many times.  Sometimes I’ve offered some assistance, sometimes I didn’t.  However, I was never harassed or hassled by any of them.
• People exercising doing calisthenics, walking, jogging, bicycling.
• People playing instruments.
• A fist fight
• A woman eating out of garbage can.
• Yale students reading, walking, eating, resting, sunbathing etc.
• The cop on the foot beat.
• The cop on mounted horses.
• The cop on motorcycle patrol.
• Church goers.
• People preaching.
• People protesting.
• Tent city (a form of protest, usually lasts 1-2 weeks before the City makes them pack up).
• Office workers and commuters briskly walking to their destinations.
• Lunch hour for many. The central monument, (also shown in the slide show), is where you’ll see a lot of this at lunch time.
• Soup line.

I want to leave you with one thought.  I think the downtown green is one cool place.  I don’t go there too much these days because I simply don’t have the time but I’m gong to make a point of getting back there more often.  I hope it continues to offer it’s residents and visitors it’s charm and tranquility for many years to come.