Category: Uncategorized

New Haven’s Amistad History

Image: Roger Sherman Baldwin painted by Rufus Wright Written by SCSU Intern, Isaac Rivera and Digital Inclusion Librarian, Alexandria Robison | July 2026 A Brief History In 1839, La Amistad was transporting 53 kidnapped Mende people, originally from Sierra Leone, to a plantation after being sold into slavery in Cuba. The ship was helmed by … Continued

Share your story! Join our Oral History project

Tell Us Your Story!

The New Haven Free Public Library (NHFPL) is initiating an oral history project that will allow individuals to be interviewed and document their experiences for the Library’s archives, with the potential for these stories to be made available online.

The Freddy Fixer logo is in the center with purple and gold waves and sparkes.

New Haven’s Historic Freddy Fixer Parade

Written by SCSU Intern Isaac Rivera | June 2026 This year the 61st annual Freddy Fixer Parade was held on June 7! Learn more about its beginnings and the people that brought it to life. History  The original Freddy Fixer parade wasn’t a parade at all—it wasn’t even named Freddy Fixer yet. It was a Dixwell and Newhallville neighborhood cleanup that … Continued

Register your child for READy for the Grade

Get Your Child READy for the Grade this Summer at NHFPL!

The New Haven Free Public Library is now registering students for READy for the Grade, our free summer literacy workshop designed to help young readers build confidence and improve reading skills before the new school year begins. READy for the Grade serves New Haven Public School students entering grades K–3 this fall who are currently … Continued

New Haven Green on May 1, 1970 showing a large crowd gathered in protest

New Haven’s 1970 May Day Protest

Protesters in the streets. National Guard troops deployed against U.S. citizens. Sounds like scenes ripped from recent headlines, but these events date back to May Day, 1970, when New Haven became a flashpoint in a nationwide struggle. Let us peer back through the mists of history and vagaries of memory to a time that seems so different than our own yet is all too familiar in many respects.  The sixties were a time … Continued

A "Save the Date" for the library's Community Baby Shower in pastel colors features the NHFPL Kids logo and the words "Save the Date! Community Baby Shower/ A literacy and resource event for new and expecting parents" above the event details. Event will be held Weds April 1 2026 from 4-7 pm at the Stetson Library at 197 Dixwell Ave.

Literacy from Birth-Three: Join NHFPL for a Community Baby Shower!

New and expecting parents are invited to a special Community Baby Shower—an early literacy event hosted by the New Haven Free Public Library’s Young Minds & Family Learning (YMFL) team—on April 1 from 4-7 pm at Stetson Branch Library, 97 Dixwell Avenue.

Graphic titled “New Haven Memory Map” over a vintage New Haven map with dotted route linking photo pins of people, buildings, food, and family images.

Memory Mapping New Haven for America’s 250th

For America’s 250th birthday, we’re celebrating New Haven’s collective history in a culmination of moments big and small, from the personal to the public, and that includes you! What individual moments, milestones, and histories make up your memory of New Haven? Share your story with us by adding your photos and the stories that accompany them onto our physical and digital maps of New Haven. If you have delicate photos, film, or documents you’d like to digitize or preserve, be sure to sign up to learn how to use the Memory Lab located right here within Ives Squared!