On many of their adventures, Matt and Devin dig out the handy Kodak digital camera and record some of the historic and other places that they have visited. The pair have visited museums, zoos, aquariums, baseball fields and sporting venues, university campuses, historic sites, and other places around the beautiful State of Connecticut as close as Hartford to as far as Mystic and even the Bronx Zoo (we forgot the camera on that trip). The picture to the left is of the Traveler's Tower (That umbrella insurance company. Did you know they have eagles living up there in the spring and summer? Pretty neat!) in the insurance capital of the world, Hartford, Connecticut. Below are some of the other sites, try to guess, where in Connecticut Matt and Devin are located!

Hartford

We visited the house of a famous author and social commentator. His real name is Samuel H. Clemens and he was born in the 1800's. He moved into this house at 331 Farmington Avenue in 1874. When he moved in the house it wasn't even finished. It looks like he and his family ran out of money. His house is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places and is right next to another famous author's house, Harriett Beecher Stowe. You know she wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin. While living in this house in the city of Hartford, this author wrote stories about the Mississippi River which included the characters Miss Polly, Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. While living in the house he published and wrote several books including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Life on the Mississippi, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. In 1903, Clemens sold his Hartford home and moved to "Stormfield," a house he built in Redding, Connecticut. On April 21 1910, this famous author passed away and kids have been reading his books in the 5th and sixth grade ever since. This site is just a few blocks from Matt's apartment. So where in Hartford are Matt and Devin? - Click here for the answer.

Hartford

This site, deep inside downtown Hartford, is located near the corner of Main and Gold Streets around the corner from the Traveler's Insurance company (see picture at top of page), the Gold Building, the Wadsworth Athenaeum, and Hartford City Hall (Go Mayor Mike!). It is a great place to visit around Halloween time because it is the Cemetery for many of Hartford's first settlers. The site is a historic one and located next to the Center Church built in the 1700's and founded by Thomas Hooker. He was the famous guy who colonized the city of Hartford way back when. When we visited the site, it was undergoing renovations. Matt promises to take me back again soon, I've never been in a cemetery so old! Today, the bus station is up the street as well as a bunch of huge buildings. I bet it was very different when they built the church and the grave site. So where in Hartford are Matt and Devin? - Click here for the answer.

Bridgeport

This was one of Matt and Devin's first adventures. Well at the time, it was the longest trip the pair had taken together. Just ask Devin, it was a long trip. Every ten minutes he kept asking Matt, "are we there yet?" "Are we there yet?" This place is located off of Route 8 and is near the Merritt Parkway and I-95 in the southwest portion of Connecticut. It has 52 acres dedicated to the wild animals of North and South America. While visiting we saw bald eagles, tigers, sea otters, monkeys, peacocks, llamas, wolves, prairie dogs and many more cool animals. It is located within the City of Bridgeport and is only a few miles from Long Island Sound. This site has been for the past 75 years, Connecticut's only zoo. So where in Bridgeport are Matt and Devin? - Click here for the answer.

Fairfield

This is site of a Catholic, Jesuit University located in a bucolic setting just a few miles from Long Island Sound. It can be accessed via I-95 and is located within Connecticut's "Gold Coast." It also happens to be Matt's alma mata and where he spent four years of his life in college. Matt and Devin went to this place twice. Once after the their above Bridgeport trip and another time to help out and volunteer at the Connecticut Special Olympics Summer Games. The campus of this university consists of 200 acres with 32 major buildings comprising over 1.4 million square feet. Buildings range in age from 1896 to the recently completed Athletic Center. The campus was created with the 1940's acquisition of two contiguous estates of the Jennings and Lasher families. Today, the campus is anchored by three manor homes of the original estates: Bellarmine Hall (1921), formerly the Lasher's 'Hearthstone Hall', re-named to honor Saint Robert Bellarmine; McAuliffe Hall (1896), originally O.G. Jennings' 'Mailands', re-named for Bishop Maurice McAuliffe, who sanctioned the creation of the University; and David J. Dolan House, Lawrence Jenning's 'Larribee', dedicated to honor the uncle of the donor who made the 1989 acquisition of Dolan Campus possible. So, where in Connecticut are Matt and Devin? - Click here for the answer.

Hartford

This gold-domed, granite and marble building lies on the edge of the 41 acre Bushnell Park just minutes from the downtown business district. The building first opened for the General Assembly in January, 1879. Pretty old huh! It's even older than my big brother, Matt. It took about eight years to build and Matt says it cost over $2.5 million. That's a lot of money. I wish I had that much! Matt says it would cost over $200 million to rebuild it if an earthquake or hurricane destroyed it. Wooooh! The building is connected to the Legislative Office Building (LOB) which is right next door. That's where the senator's offices are. I've been there you know. You can get to the LOB via an underground tunnel! The building has these huge gold coins near the entrance and a whole bunch of stone statues up near the windows. Pretty neat. This guy over to the right has a sword and a cape. The House of Representatives meets in the House Chambers located on the second floor of this building during times of session. Senators meet on the third floor of this building too. Various Connecticut dignitaries (Matt told me how to spell that one, I can't even say it. It means important people.) have offices here including Governor John Rowland, Lt. Governor Jodi Rell and Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz. This building was declared a national historical landmark by the United States Department of Interior in 1972. So where in Connecticut are Matt and Devin? - Click here for the answer.

More adventures to come in a few weeks! Stay tuned.

Do you have a place that the pair should visit? Send Matt and Devin an e-mail to whereinct@matthewjcook.com. Free passes and admission price donations or coupons are greatly appreciated! In addition, we'll even feature the site after we visit.