Officials Provide Saturday Update Following Train Derailment
May 18th, 2013 · No Comments · News and Events
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Recalling The Wreck Of The Federal Express in The West End
May 18th, 2013 · 1 Comment · News and Events
July 11, 1911, the wreck of the Federal Express in Bridgeport's West End. Photo courtesy J.W. Swanberg collection.
Friday night two Metro North trains collided in the city’s West End leading to multiple injuries. On July 11, 1911, close to the location of Friday night’s derailment, one of the most famous accidents in the history of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad Company occurred in Bridgeport, the wreck of the Federal Express. The crash killed 14 people and injured 47. It happened when the train ran across a switch point at the Fairfield Avenue overpass in the West End at 60 miles per hour. The train jumped the tracks and plunged 20 feet into a roadway, destroying the locomotive and five cars. Passengers included the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team whose manager Roger Bresnahan rescued many people in the crash.
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Wyman Cracks The Whip, Jepsen Whistles Ringmaster, Finch Delivers Watch For Barnum Festival
May 18th, 2013 · No Comments · Best of Bridgeport, News and Events
Lieutenant Governor Nancy Wyman hands the whip to Barnum Festival Ringmaster John Stafstrom at Friday's Whip, Whistle, Watch luncheon. Photo by Doreen Birdsell.
Nothing like a few state constitutional officers to spice up the formal kick off to the 65th Barnum Festival featuring former Democratic Town Chair John Stafstrom as the 2013 Ringmaster. This festival is certain to be memorable. Lieutenant Governor Nancy Wyman and Attorney General George Jepsen were part of the power crowd that jammed the Bridgeport Holiday Inn Friday afternoon for the Whip, Whistle and Watch luncheon, the official launching point to celebrate the annual tribute to legendary 19th Century showman P.T. Barnum. www.barnumfestival.com [Read more →]
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The Challenging Future Of The Diocese Of Bridgeport
May 17th, 2013 · 4 Comments · Analysis and Comment
Long before John Marshall Lee began examining city budget books in his quest for an “Open, Accountable and Transparent” government, he had been urging the Diocese of Bridgeport to eat its OATs. The diocese has been facing all kinds of challenges including heavy financial losses. Lee examines:
The Diocese of Bridgeport has been without a Bishop for longer than one year and now “a buyout offer to 60 employees” raises questions about Diocesan financial health. The past two men who held this office were promoted to grander positions in some way acknowledging the “value” of this episcopal position as a “stepping stone” to political advancement. Fairfield County is known for its overall wealth and income per capita as well as for the glaring “gap” between those at the top and bottom of such demographics.
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If Hennessy’s Reform Bill Fails Will A Legal Challenge Follow?
May 16th, 2013 · 8 Comments · Analysis and Comment, City Council, City Politics
State Rep. Charlie Stallworth has confirmed with OIB he now supports State Rep. Jack Hennessy’s state legislative bill that bars city employees from serving on the City Council amended to grandfather in municipal workers currently serving on the city’s legislative body. The City Charter prohibits city employees from sitting on the council, but a loophole in state laws allows it, or that at least is the interpretation of City Attorney Mark Anastasi. Even with the amendment that has added some local legislative support, the bill faces hurdles for passage such as opposition from labor unions whose collective bargaining contracts are approved by the council. If the bill fails, could this issue find its way into court?
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→ 8 CommentsTags: Charlie Stallworth·Citizens Working for a Better Bridgeport·David Walker·Jack Hennessy·Mark Anastasi·Mary-Jane Foster
Mr. Barnum Invites You To Jenny Lind Concert Featuring 12 Sopranos At UB
May 16th, 2013 · 3 Comments · Best of Bridgeport, News and Events
Julie Anne Hamula, 2012 American Jenny Lind.
This is a cool event, free and open to the public. Barnum Museum Executive Director Kathy Maher, event organizer, says it all.
“Everything about the Barnum Festival embraces the true spirit of P.T. Barnum. He loved art and music, and above all else, he loved making people happy. Remarkably, Barnum’s 1850 tour of Jenny Lind was without question the first American Idol! More so than any other of Barnum’s extraordinary enterprises, it was the Jenny Lind tour that established Barnum as a genius in marketing and advertising, and defined him as the Great American Showman! It’s an honor to work with and as a Barnum Festival volunteer on such an important and historic program!”
The final round of the 65th Annual Jenny Lind competition will take place on Saturday, May 18, at 1 p.m. in the Recital Hall of the Arnold Bernhard Center, 126 Park Avenue, on the campus of the University of Bridgeport. The event is free and open to the public.
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→ 3 CommentsTags: Barnum Festival·Barnum Museum·Bijou Theatre·John Stafstrom·Kathy Maher·University of Bridgeport
Report: Bridgeport Metro Among Tops For Business Growth
May 17th, 2013 · 15 Comments · Analysis and Comment, Development and Zoning
MarketWatch graphic
Articles published recently have claimed Bridgeport is the highest taxed, or one of the highest taxed, cities in the country, disputed by Mayor Bill Finch. Now a Wall Street Journal MarketWatch report says Bridgeport Metro (that also includes Fairfield County’s gold coast) is among the Top Business Growth Cities here examining metro areas in 2012. The full list is here.
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