History of Southington Through the War Years

Nov. 12, 2012 - PRLog -- The newest addition to Arcadia Publishing’s popular Images of America series is Southington: The War Years from local author Liz Campbell Kopec. The book boasts more than 200 vintage images and memories of days gone by.

With the outbreak of World War I, industry in Southington, previously an agrarian community, grew in both size and profit. The citizens of Southington banded together to help in the war effort by joining the American Red Cross and Home Guard and selling Liberty Bonds.

Industrial growth continued until the stock market crash of 1929. Though few factories closed, most were forced to reduce their workforce and hours of production. By the end of the 1930s, the nation was preparing for a war most people hoped would never happen.

Factories rehired former employees and created new job opportunities, and four months after Pearl Harbor, Southington’s 17 factories were working around the clock to produce wartime goods. Two World Wars and the Great Depression left their mark on citizens, creating changes that remain today.

Highlights of Southington: The War Years:
•   The Wilsonian Era
•   Firesides
•   Between the wars
•   The home front
•   Aftermath

Liz Campbell Kopec, an attorney in Southington, is past president of the Southington Historical Society and a lecturer on Oak Hill Cemetery, the Moore family, and Southington history. The Southington Historical Society, the Barnes Museum, and the people of Southington have generously provided the images used in this book.

Available at area bookstores, independent retailers, and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at www.arcadiapublishing.com or
(888)-313-2665.  

Arcadia Publishing is the leading publisher of local and regional history in the United States.  Our mission is to make history accessible and meaningful through the publication of books on the heritage of America’s people and places.  Have we done a book on your town?  Visit www.arcadiapublishing.com.