We just had to get out again today and travel the back roads of Connecticut. Lately we have seen the most gorgeous hydrangea bushes along the side of the roads,so I have to post a picture of that here. Thread City's real name is Willimantic. It is called Thread City because of the Windham Textile Mill which used to be located here. The city is primarily known for its frog bridge. In June 1754 a loud noise awakened the townspeople. The settlers prepared for battle,thinking they were under attack by Indians. The next morning they found hundreds of dead bullfrogs in a nearby pond. The city since has adopted the bullfrog as their mascot. Two large frogs guard the entrance of each side of a bridge which crosses into the city. There is also a foot bridge in this city which is believed to be the longest foot bridge(east of the Mississippi)spanning a river,railroad,and a roadway. We walked it and found it to be an easy and pleasant way to cross an urban area. It was built in 1906. Also while touring this town we checked out the "Painted Ladies". Willimantic is second only to San Francisco in privately owned Victorian Homes.
An almost battle against hundreds of dead frogs?? What an incredible historical fact about Willimantic. There seems to be a few details missing from your reporting.
ReplyDeleteI looked up the rest of the story; apparently the nearby pond had dried up, and the remaining frogs were migrating away, and made a whole lot of noise doing it. This is what alarmed the townspeople and explains the hundreds of dead frogs.