GAYLORDSVILLE—The annual Orb/Sphere Hunt is underway this summer, sponsored by Merwinsville Hotel Restoration, Inc., in Gaylordsville and financially supported by the New Milford Commission on the Arts. Glass orbs are in 25 locations in northwest Connecticut towns, including three locations in Kent. Participants get to keep a found orb for free but they need to share their find online.
Each site hides numbered and dated glass orbs either inside or outside on their property. Participants can search for and keep any glass orb that they find and register it on the Merwinsville Hotel website at www.merwinsvillehotel.org. They can also upload a photo onto the website and share their find on social media.
One of the goals of the hunt is to encourage people to visit different towns and organizations in their search. Kent has three locations: Eric Sloane Museum, Connecticut Antique Machinery Association and Kent Historical Society.
The other participating organizations include: Brookfield Craft Center, Browns Forge, Danbury Museum and Historical Society, Danbury Railway Museum, Gallery 25 & Creative Arts Studio, Gunn Historical Museum, Harrybrooke Park, , Litchfield Historical Society, Gaylordsville Little Red Schoolhouse, Merryall Center for the Arts, Merwinsville Hotel Restoration, Inc., New Fairfield Historical Society – Little Red Schoolhouse, New Milford Historical Society, New Milford Trust for Historic Preservation, Preserve New Fairfield, Old Boardman Bridge, Pratt Nature Center, The Silo, Village Center for the Arts, Warren Historical Society, and Washington Oak Park.
A map is available at each location and the hotel’s website showing the locations of each participating organization.
Glassblowers Leslie French and Andy Pyle from Nunwell Glass in Lakeville once again created the blown glass orbs that are numbered, dated, and stamped with “MHR.” The original scavenger hunt was launched in 2021 in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Merwinsville’s restoration of the historic building.
The Merwinsville Hotel is a national historic landmark located at 1 Brown’s Forge Road in Gaylordsville. For further information, call 860-350-4443 or visit www.merwinsvillehotel.org.
