Mayor Dick Moccia attended the small ceremony to dedicate and install the hand crafted iron signs that once designated the Silvermine area.
The new signs, identical to the original ones designed by the late cartoonist Clifton Meek, are the result of a two-year restoration project by the Silvermine Community Association’s Gateways and Thresholds Committee.
More than a dozen association members and Mayor Richard Moccia gathered yesterday morning near Broad Street and Silvermine Avenue as the first signpost was installed. When the project is completed, there will be four signs in Norwalk, five in Wilton and seven in New Canaan.
The signs, costing $1,000 each, are being donated by association members and made by Steve Stefanidis of Steve’s Custom Iron Works in Norwalk.
According to Peter Viteretto, committee chairman, the signs are about community identity, not exclusivity.
“It’s not staking a claim,” he said. “I don’t want it to seem elitist. It’s a community, and it’s a welcoming.”
Silvermine began as a late 18th-century parish that grew up around the discovery of silver, as well as agriculture and mills driven by the Silvermine River.
In the 20th century, the tri-town area’s rich history and antique homes drew fine artists, designers, writers and inventors from throughout the country, much as they were drawn to towns such as Westport and Weston.
Among them were cartoonist Meek, who founded the Silvermine Forge, John Vassos, an inventor credited with designing the first television displayed at the 1939-40 New York World’s Fair, and Ackermann, who owns an architectural design firm in Norwalk.
According to the Advocate’s report, there were 16 original signs that were installed in 1960 and they had all disappeared over time. Including a rumored citing of one selling on ebay for $2000 recently.
From the Silvermine web site:
About a year and a half ago, the Silvermine Community Association (SCA) embarked upon an exciting project to visibly mark Silvermine’s boundries in a way that connects this creative and historic heritage. We identified sixteen key ‘gateways’ where residents and visitors enter into Silvermine. At each of these locations, we will place a replica of the iron “This Is Silvermine” sign originally created in 1963 through a collaboration of John Vassos, Clifton Meek and Granville Ackerman.
In order to do this, we solicited the financial support of members of the community to sponsor the signs. The response was overwhelming!. In return for their support, the donors have received a lifetime membership in the SCA and a commemorative plaque on their sign and our hearty thanks! More information about the history of these beautiful black and silver signs and the location sites can be found below.
About the Signs - The signs have all been completed by a native of Norwalk, Steve Stefanidis of Steve’s Custom Iron Works in Norwalk, who beat out 18 other bidders with an excellent price and quality workmanship. The SCA’s Gateways and Thresholds Committee, headed by Peter Viteretto, plans to have them installed at the Silvermine gateways in Norwalk, Wilton and New Canaan very shortly. The first Norwalk sign was installed by the Norwalk DPW on Wednesday, September 5th at 8:45 a.m. on Silvermine Avenue between Broad Street and Cliffview Ave.; the installation of the New Canaan signs will be done early in the Fall by the New Canaan DPW. As of now, we have not been able to secure the commitment from Wilton to have their DPW install the Wilton signs, but are working on that as well as other options.
source: The Advocate, Silvermine neighborhood marks its turf a second time, By James Lomuscio, September 6 2007
I’m only kidding
