Stowe Center Response to COVID-19

March 13, 2020

In support of the efforts to slow the spread of coronavirus, the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center will close to the public beginning Saturday, March 14. We are prepared to be closed through April 30, though this date may change as we continue to work with government and public health officials. Their recommendations will inform our actions. When the decision to reopen is made, this page will be updated and the information shared on social media and by email. We are investigating ways to offer options to enjoy the museum and its resources, so stay tuned.

How we are responding
What you can do
How to stay informed

How we are responding

The closure impacts the Harriet Beecher Stowe House, Visitor Center, Research Library and Katharine Seymour Day House. Private and public events and meetings onsite are also postponed.

The Stowe Center’s gardens and outside spaces remain open.

In-person research appointments at the Stowe Center Collections are suspended during this time frame. Collections staff will continue to respond to research inquiries via email or by phone at 860.522.9258 ext. 313.

What you can do

Please follow recommendations from public health authorities, including:

Wash your hands frequently with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds.
Use hand sanitizers where available.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
Cover your coughs and sneezes. Hold a tissue over your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze, and then throw the tissue in the garbage.
Avoid handshakes and hugs.

How to stay informed

Here are some additional resources for the latest information about the coronavirus:

School Group Interest Form

School Group Interest Form 2023

Thank you so much for your interest in a group tour at the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center! Please help us schedule your visit by answering the questions below.

School name:

Please suggest three dates and times when your group would like to visit. (Note: the Stowe Center is closed on Sunday and Tuesday.)

Contact Teacher Name:

Contact Teacher Email:(Required)

Contact Teacher Phone Number:(Required)

Number of students expected to attend:(Required)

Please enter a number from 8 to 40.

Please identify the grade level(s) of attending students:(Required)

Likely number of chaperones (including other teachers):

The Stowe Center requires one adult per every 10 students.

Are there special student, teacher, or chaperone accommodations that can help us serve you best?

Do you plan to have lunch on site?

Yes, please.

No, thank you.

Are you interested in scheduling a joint visit with our neighbor, The Mark Twain House and Museum?

Yes, please

No, thank you.

If yes, have you already contacted The Mark Twain House?

Yes

Adult Group Interest Form

Group Tour Interest Form 2022

Thank you so much for your interest in a group tour at the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center! Please help us schedule your visit by answering the questions below.

Group Name:

Name of Primary Contact:(Required)

Contact Email:(Required)

Contact Phone Number:(Required)

What date would you like to visit? (The Stowe Center typically books group tours for Thursday through Sunday visits.)

Expected number of visitors:(Required)

Please enter a number from 20 to 42.

Please indicate the number of adults, seniors, and children expected in your group:

Are there special accommodations that can help us serve you best?

Are you interested in a joint visit with our neighbor, The Mark Twain House and Museum?

Yes, please.

No, thank you.

If yes, have you already contacted The Mark Twain House?

Yes

Isabella Beecher Hooker

Isabella Holmes Beecher Hooker (1822-1907)
An ardent member of the woman’s suffrage movement, Isabella Holmes Beecher Hooker joined in the cause along with Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony.

Isabella was the first child of Lyman Beecher and his second wife, Harriet Porter Beecher.

Isabella began her education at Catharine Beecher’s Hartford Female Seminary and lived with her sister Mary Perkins. In 1841 she married John Hooker, a descendant of Thomas Hooker, the founder of Hartford. John Hooker was a lawyer and an abolitionist.

In the early 1860s Isabella got involved in the woman’s suffrage movement. Isabella joined Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony as a member of the National Woman’s Suffrage Association in 1869. She was a founding member of the Connecticut Woman’s Suffrage Association. Isabella’s ideas of equality were influenced by John Stuart Mills’ On Liberty and the Subjection of Women.

In 1871, Isabella organized the annual convention of the National Woman’s Suffrage Association in Washington D.C. and presented her argument before the Committee on the Judiciary of the United States Senate. Her husband, John Hooker, believed in his wife and supported her activities. He helped Isabella draft a bill to the Connecticut Legislature giving married women the same property rights as their husbands. The bill passed in 1877. Isabella annually submitted a bill granting women the right to vote, but it did not pass in her lifetime.