Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/477238
36 Hartford Business Journal • November 26, 2012 www.HartfordBusiness.com Celebrating 20 Years of Business News I clearly remember when I first came to Hartford, how beautiful everything looked. The magnificent magnolia trees on Farmington and Asylum Avenues were only the beginning. The tree-lined streets and the magnificent buildings that housed the Aetna Life Insurance Co., the Hartford Insurance Group (then called the Hartford Accident & Indemnity Co. and the Hartford Fire Insurance Co.), The Travelers Insurance Co. and many more. In the late '50s and early '60s, Hartford was home to 39 insurance companies and was known as the Insurance Capital of the United States. The years that followed were exciting and dynamic and during the late '60s and through the '70s, Hartford began its renaissance. In November 1964, the Town Meeting for Tomorrow was convened for three days in the Hotel America on the newly completed Con- stitution Plaza in downtown Hartford. Olcott Smith, chairman of Aetna Life Affiliated Cos., served as general chairman and gave the opening remarks on Nov. 19, 1964. Sterling Tooker, president of The Travelers Insurance Cos., gave the keynote address. More than 500 individuals representing the 30 separate communities in the region gathered together for a three-day journey for the purpose of free and open discussion on their problems with the goal of considering a program for metro- politan cooperation. At the conclusion of this historic Town Meeting for Tomorrow on Saturday, Nov. 21, 1964, Alfred Van Sinderen, vice chairman of the town meeting and then vice president of Southern New England Telephone Co., in his concluding remarks and summary, presented a resolution calling for the foundation of what would become the Capital Region Council of Governments. It passed unanimously. I was an integral part of this Town Meeting and worked as a member of the 150-person team who served in planning arrangements, publicity, hospitality, resources, secretarial and reportorial capacities to the member firms of the Greater Hartford Chamber of Commerce who financed the Town Meeting for Tomorrow, and I shall never forget the experience, especially as I was involved on the final night of the conference in helping to draft and prepare Van Sinderen's final sum- mary and the resolution he presented. Today, we still do not have regional government but in many ways we do have and will continue the quest for regional cooperation. Then in 1967 I had the privilege of arrang- ing a black tie dinner at The Hartford Club. This was six years prior to the time that I became one of two women who were the first women to become members of The Hart- ford Club. In 1967 women still had to enter the club through the side entrance but I was relatively new to Hartford and welcomed the opportunity to become involved. The date of the event was April 7, 1967, when The Hart- ford Times (the evening newspaper) staged a mammoth banquet to celebrate its 150th anniversary. That night the club overflowed with 450 guests to hear Gov. George Romney of Michigan, announce that he was seeking the Republican nomination for president of the United States in 1968. The dignitaries at the head table that night included Gov. John Dempsey, Senators Dodd and Ribicoff, Archbishop Henry J. O'Brien, Bishop Walter H. Gray; Francis S. Murphy (retired publisher of the Hartford Times); Howard A. Moreen, chairman of the Greater Hartford Chamber of Commerce, and Paul Miller, president of the Associated Press and the Gannett Co., the Times parent. It was one of the paper's last hurrahs, for it ceased pub- lication in October 1976. What an exciting evening that was and I still remember, as if it were yesterday, the gathering of all the important men in town, dressed in black tie and seated in the beauti- ful old ballroom of The Hartford Club. In the late '60s and early '70s, Hartford really began to grow and prosper. Constitu- tion Plaza was finished and several boutique shops and a restaurant opened on the plaza and the Travelers Research Center was situ- ated at the North End under the beautiful offices of The Greater Hartford Chamber of Commerce. At Christmas time, the Plaza became ablaze with tiny twinkling lights and a huge Christmas tree by the clock tower and Santa Claus would arrive at the appointed hour. This tradition lasted for more than three decades and only in the last few years has become dark as the transition of the lights was made to Bushnell Park. Maybe someday the lights on Constitution Plaza will return. We all hope so. There are many more interesting sto- ries about life in Hartford during the last four decades but they will have to wait for another time. g Margaret Lawson, a former executive at Hartford Steam Boiler, is active with CPTV. T he exterior of The Hartford Club has changed little in the last 20 years, but many changes have occurred in the club's membership and operations. The 1904 Georgian Revival building on Prospect Street is a familiar site to those who work and live in downtown Hartford. In addition to the club's members, hundreds of thousands of guests have visited the club for business functions, galas and family events. While many still stereotype the city's larg- est club as a traditional setting reserved for the privileged, the membership has changed in the last 20 years much like downtown has changed during that period. For many years The Hartford Club was the gathering place for the city's business executives from Travel- ers, Aetna, The Hartford, Hartford National Bank, CBT, UTC and other city-based com- panies. As those corporations have become more global, and in some cases been acquired by rivals, the club's membership base has evolved into a much more diverse group of individuals. Despite this change, The Hart- ford Club remains a gathering place for busi- ness and community leaders. Club leadership has recognized the changes occurring in Hartford and continues to adapt to meet the community's needs. The club has reached out to large nonprofits and creat- ed a special class of mem- bership so their leaders will be engaged with other business leaders. There is an increased membership emphasis on small entre- preneurial business lead- ers and younger corporate members, who are tomor- row's leaders. While there are still many corporate executives who are active club members, the typical membership profile has changed. The demography of the club membership is quite different from 20 years ago. Like all of us, The Hartford Club has been impacted by the current economic downturn that stubbornly refuses to go away. During the peak of the recession there were sig- nificant declines in membership and many business and nonprofit events were cut back. However, the club has bounced back from these challenges and membership has steadily grown during the last three years. Throughout the country there has been a considerable decline in city clubs and club membership during the last decade. While The Hartford Club has faced the same chal- lenges, it continues to evolve and meet those challenges head on. While there are continuing changes at The Hartford Club, one thing that remains con- stant is the club's mission in the City of Hart- ford. The club is not just a building, but rather a gather place where leaders in the business, arts and political worlds meet. Changes in Hartford are reflected in the club's member- ship, but The Hartford Club will continue to change and adapt to meet the evolving needs of its members and the community. g Larry Brown is managing partner with Horton International, a worldwide execu- tive search firm based in West Hartford, and immediate past president of The Hart- ford Club When black-tie dinners were the rage The face of the Hartford Club has changed across 20 years By Margaret Lawson "Remembrance" By Larry Brown "Remembrance" 'We still do not have regional government but... we will continue the quest for regional cooperation.' STORIES 20 Years of Margaret Lawson, vice president of special pro- grams and event marketing for Hartford Steam Boiler, was honored for her professional achieve- ments and community service by Grand Manner Magazine. Pictured at the 2004 event are Lawson and her husband, Roger. Despite financial troubles and threats to close, the Hartford Club rolls on at its historic Prospect Street location. P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y T H E H A R T F O R D C L U B