The Silo at Hunt Hill Farm Trust renews its commitment to follow Ruth and Skitch’s original vision with a new executive director and staff  breathing new life into the organization.

It’s a store, a gallery, a cooking school, a museum, a farm and a cultural center—and it’s one of the Northwest Corner’s hidden gems. Located in New Milford and surrounded by hundreds of acres of open space, active farmland, stone walls, and woodlands, Hunt Hill Farm Trust is notably listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Most of us know it as “The Silo” and  we have taken cooking classes there, brought our children to see the huge Christmas Tree, and listened to great music while enjoying a rack of barbecued ribs.

Hunt Hill Farm was active as a farm for almost 300 years, but in 1972 it became the home of Ruth and Skitch Henderson. Skitch Henderson was a pianist, conductor, and composer, and the founder of The New York Pops orchestra. He also was the musical director for The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson. In 1958 he married Ruth Einsiedel and more than 10 years later they moved to New Milford. They transformed the buildings on the 200-acres of pasture and woodland into a mecca for the arts and culture. They raised their two children while operating The Silo, which they turned into a gathering place for people who loved good food, music, and art. Their intent was to make it a cultural and teaching center that supported the arts.

In 2003 Ruth and Skitch co-founded the Hunt Hill Farm Trust, in an effort to preserve their farm’s land and buildings and to celebrate Americana in music, art and literature through the creation of a living museum. An affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, Hunt Hill Farm is managed by an all volunteer board of directors, a professional staff and dedicated volunteers. In partnership with regional and state conservation groups and the Town of New Milford, the 130-acre Hunt Hill Farm Preserve has been permanently conserved as open space, woodland and active farmland, with public access. Hunt Hill offers free guided hikes, tours of the historic buildings and grounds, and for families, a special place to relax and experience nature. There are ten historic buildings on this classic New England farm and all are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Offering a window on the life, career, and pursuits of Skitch Henderson, the museum houses the Skitch Henderson American Music Archive and carefully chosen pieces from the holdings of the Hunt Hill Farm Trust. Each piece accents one of the many aspects that made Mr. Henderson such an extraordinary individual.

Mr. Henderson passed away at the age of 87 in 2005, and Ruth passed away in February of 2014. At this time the board decided to restructure, switching from a founder-based organization to a mission-based organization. They hired a new director, cooking school director and marketing director. The new staff is redefining the programs based on the needs of the community. Programs are now being funded by grants.

Kate Vengrove started in April of this year as Executive Director and will lead the organization’s vision and mission. Her background is in development and she has been instrumental in the growth of many organizations, including the Forman School in Litchfield. On her new position and the hiring of staff, Kate points out “What will stay the same is the vision that Ruth and Skitch had for The Silo: to be a cultural and teaching center that supports the arts. We will continue to have our regular cooking classes, the giant Christmas tree and all of the familiar holiday programming,  as well as regular exhibits in the gallery. We are not changing so much as breathing life back into the organization, and bringing back the passion that Ruth and Skitch had.”

The Silo Cooking School was the first recreational cooking school in Connecticut. Education was important to Ruth and Skitch. Sandy Daniels, who ran the cooking school 18 years ago has returned once again as Cooking School Director. Sandy had worked closely with Ruth and Skitch in the early days. She is a great chef with a catering and education background. As part of her new role, she is reaching out to local chefs. One such local chef is Cassandra Purdy who is known for her “Pizza to the People” business. Purdy taught a class called “Got Too Many Veggies?” offering ideas on what to do with the abundance of summer produce from our gardens. Other upcoming cooking classes are: recipes for smoking on your backyard grill taught by Catherine and Dan Felix, a class led by Chhobi Choudhary called Incredible India, a Halloween-themed class for kids, and ginger-bread house classes in November and December. Also in December, Chef Daniel Rosati will give two classes with a focus on the International Feast of 7 Fishes. The full list of classes can be found on their website.

Cameron Cunningham is the new Marketing Manager and will focus on The Silo’s presence in the community. Her background is in non-profits, including running a non-profit in Hartford that promoted financial literacy. “In general what we want to do is have a more consistent presence in the community and to maintain programming that promotes our mission of cultivating a love of land, food and the arts.”

Bridgit O’Hara, a new Milford native, is an art student at Roger Williams University who has been an intern in the gallery for the summer. The vision for the gallery is to have a mix of unique and contemporary shows while maintaining the commitment to great art. The New Talent Gallery showcases art from new artists. The current exhibit features work from the elementary and middle school students from Washington Montessori School.In the main gallery, Bridgit has curated a new fall exhibition called “To Be Everything”, which opens on August 20. The all-women show will feature work from Suzanne Heilmann, Dawn Breeze and Sarah Walko. A mixed-media exhibit, the show will include both large, anchoring works and small delicate pieces. The works will be displayed in a mixed environment; the majority of the art will be showcased in the Main Gallery but there will also be pieces spilling into the barnyard. “To Be Everything” is in part a tribute to co-founder Skitch Henderson, who described Hunt Hill Farm as “a preservation of a life that was, is and forever shall be.”

The new team is planning to expand the center’s offerings, such as an ongoing concert series, art exhibitions, more kids’ programming, the cooking classes (of course), and more events in general. Included in their upcoming concert list is a performance with Chris Brubeck on November 14.

“The events are really key; we want to have more gatherings that are open to the public— events sponsored by The Silo, as well as more private events like weddings, parties, retreats, etc. We also plan to rebrand and grow our museum, eventually having rotating exhibits. The trust owns 130 acres of protected land, and we want to create hikeable trails that will be open to the public. Finally, we want to rebrand our store as more than a kitchen store; we want it to include items that reflect our entire mission, not just cooking,” says Cunningham.

The exhibition “To Be Everything”, opens on Thursday, August 20. The reception is from 5 pm to  8 pm in the Silo Gallery. The exhibit will run until early November.

The center is available for weddings, showers, rehearsal dinners, holiday parties, meetings and retreats, corporate team-building and other private events. The Silo Great Room is a converted barn from c. 1800 that features hardwood floors, rustic exposed chestnut timber beams and a vaulted 27-foot ceiling. The Museum Studio has an adjoining deck overlooking Museum Field and is perfect for a tented affair.

In the Kitchen Store one can find gourmet cookware, cookbooks, aprons, kitchen gadgets, tableware, and pottery, artwork and jewelry by local artisans.  

A basic membership is $35 and a family membership is $55 a year. If you’d like to become a member, go to their website: hunthillfarmtrust.org

Hours are Wednesday – Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm; Sunday, 12 pm to 5 pm; Closed on Monday and Tuesday.

The Silo at Hunt Hill Farm Trust
44 Upland Road
New Milford
860.355.0300
hunthillfarmtrust.org