High Roads and Low Roads (Tours)- Route 9
- Get on State 12, almost 2 miles south of Webster
- Go through Wilsonville (Town of Thompson) which was a mill village
- Also in Thompson is the Shrine of St. Joseph, a state highway park
- Runs parallel to the French River then will cross over it, but will still run parallel.
- Intersects with Route 193, enters Chanicsville, another village of Thompson
- Enters Putnam – Route 12 merges with Route 44. Route 12 will turn left (Grove Street), but stay straight and take the next left onto Main Street. Looking for 85 Main Street.
Notes about Travel: It took me 113 minutes to get there, passing through the French River Valley, which was beautiful. I also passed through Thompson, which was definitely an old mill town. . The total distance was 53.8 miles. I left my house in Maynard, snaked around the back roads to Route 20 in Northboro (stopping at DD) to Route 12 in Auburn. There was a lot of traffic and construction.
About Putnam (in the 1930s).
Putnam was named after the Revolutionary War Hero, Israel Putnam. Putnam was born in Massachusetts, but lived most of his life in this region of Connecticut. You can check out more about his life here. In the 1930s, Putnam was a leading industrial center for the northeast section of Connecticut. Putnam was a mill town and in the heyday of railroads, was the intersection of 2 different rail lines, which made it pretty prestigous.
About the Putnam Inn:
The Putnam Inn was actually in the Union Block on Main Street, about where the Shoppers Guide is now. It burnt down during the fire of 1966. The historical society has a display with pictures of the Putnam Inn there but it was opening far later than my departure from Putnam.
Notes from letters:
Monday evening (pre marriage)
His mother had a hard time getting him up in the morning -put the dog on his chest. Drove 90 odd miles, put in four displays. Going to Westerly RI Elm Tree Inn
May 3, 1932
Was living in Hartford but was staying overnight in Putnam, talked about getting married in the fall. Has had a good week, got a shipment, dropped off 38 panels at different stores, majority on Hi-Plane and luxury, the poundage for yesterday was 92 pounds and today a drop shipment of a total of 150 pounds and one for 50 pounds
Coffee Shop & General Notes about Putnam: I went to Sawdust Coffee House at 91 Main Street. The coffee shop had both outdoor and indoor seating. It had the cool vibe that I like in a coffee house. There is entertainment at night.
As far as Putnam, it looks like they are doing a lot of redevelopment in the downtown area. There were some neat new restaurants, which included outdoor dining. The latest census revealed that 7138 people live there. I stayed in Putnam for 32 minutes.
Waiting 