BRISTOL – Author and former civil engineer Richard DeLuca will discuss 400 years of transportation history in Connecticut June 23 at Manross Library.
DeLuca's program "Connecticut in Motion" will be held starting at 6:30 p.m. at the library at 260 Central St. Copies of his books will also be available to purchase.
Deluca worked in the transportation field for ten years as a state highway planner and regional transportation planner. His first book, "Post Roads and Iron Horses: Transportation in Connecticut from Colonial Times to the Age of Steam," was published by Wesleyan University Press in 2011. He has also published "Paved Roads & Public Money," which describes the evolution of transportation systems in modern Connecticut.
Teresa Goulden, branch manager at Manross Library, said that the talk will give an overview of transportation developments in the state. Topics will include the turnpike movement of the 1800s through the Farmington Canal, steamboats, steam railroads, electric trolleys, the bicycle and more.
"One of my co-workers saw that he did a talk at another library, so we decided to reach out to him," said Goulden. "The theme of our summer reading program this year is ‘Read Beyond the Beaten Path’, so we're trying to host a lot of programs with a transportation theme.”
Goulden said that past programs that the library has hosted related to transportation history, including a program that covered Bristol's trolleys by Tom Dickau, have been very well attended.
“Our Patrons at Manross Library seem to respond very well to historical programs; there is a great interest in history," she said.
DeLuca's first book "Post Roads & Iron Horses" focuses on how advances in transportation technology during the 19th century transformed the state from a rough network of colonial towns to an "industrial powerhouse of the Gilded Age.” The book discusses in-depth how innovators and financiers, lawyers and legislators, struggled to control the movement of passengers and goods in southern New England during this time.
DeLuca's second book, "Paved Roads & Public Money", begins with the "bicycle craze" of the 1880s and continues through the efforts of Governors Malloy and Lamont to revitalize Connecticut transportation. The book highlights how the history of the state's transportation history has affected current debates on infrastructure and funding.
To register for this program, call 860-584-7790 or visit bristollib.com.
Brian M. Johnson can be reached at 860-973-1806 or bjohnson@bristolpress.com.
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