A Wall To Remember In Waterford

Waterford Senior Center has big plans for a wall with your name on it—and it doesn't involve spray paint.  

The plan is to create a tile mural depicting the history and natural life of Waterford. The overall design concept is to recreate the town, starting with the coastline at the bottom and working up to Quaker Hill at the top with Jordan Green in the center.

The finished work will be five feet by 15 feet, made up of tiles as small as two inches by six inches and as large as 12 inches by 18 inches. Medium-sized tiles are six by six inches. Each three-dimensional tile will be commissioned and hand-crafted by noted ceramic artist Marion Grebow. 

The corners will be anchored by a tile that showcases the town's original industries: farming, quarries, fishing/scalloping, and mills. At one point in its early history, Waterford was home to both grist mills for corn and woolen mills. What happens in between to tie the town together is up to you. 

History and Generosity

The wall is inspired by a tile mural completed by the same artist and installed at the Acton Public Library in Old Saybrook. Sally Richie, director of senior services for Waterford, said as soon as she saw it she began to think about doing the same thing in Waterford at the Senior Center.

"It will be such a beautiful focal point," said Richie.

It's also a way of preserving the town's history. "People who have lived here for 60 years have memories to share," she said. "We're as taken with the history as with the art."

The purpose of the project is to raise money to support the town's seniors. Proceeds from each tile will go to the Waterford Senior Services Endowment Fund, which was established in 2007 to help people on fixed incomes cover emergency expenses that may range from a leaking roof to an inability to pay for food or prescriptions.

People who buy the tiles can also choose to donate the proceeds to support the town's recreation and parks activities, or divide the donation between the two.  

People can buy small tiles that may be as simple as a name or they can provide the artist with photographs and a little history to memorialize a historic home, a traditional industry, local Native American heritage, a local organization, or a historic event such as the 1938 hurricane. Really, the only limit here is the imagination. 

Many of the medium-sized 6 by 6 tiles are of local flora and fauna, which people are buying as memorials or as gifts to celebrate special events such as birthdays or wedding anniversaries. Local businesses are also welcome to sponsor tiles as long as the design is in keeping with the theme.

For instance, Stop & Shop couldn't commission a tile featuring the modern store or its logo but it could add its name and logo to a tile depicting a historic general store or market in Waterford. Some tiles featuring well-known landmarks, such as the Niantic River Bridge, have already been created and are just waiting for someone to purchase them. 

A Lasting Legacy

The largest tiles range in price from $1,000 to $3,000. The medium-sized tiles go for $500-$800. The small tiles, which may bear the name of a loved one on a 2 by 6 inch tile or be 4 by 6 inches with an image such as a boat, shell, flower, or bird, sell for between $75 to $250. Each tile can be personalized with a story, historical details, a special message, or a name.  

The beauty of doing a mural in tiles, Richie noted, is that it can be installed in sections and mounted to the wall. That way, if the building is ever repurposed or demolished, the mural can easily be moved. 

Richie hopes that now there are tiles for people to look at, more commissions will come in. Senior Services will need to sell at least half of the total number of tiles required to make the mural before it can begin installation. 

You can find out about detailed topics and images available for purchase by calling (860) 444-5839 or go online to www.waterfordcommunitycenter.org. Some of the tiles are displayed at Waterford Town Hall and at Waterford Public Library.