Multi-Town U.S. History Series Starts In Canton This Week

CANTON, CT — A multi-town library effort aiming to educate the public about how the U.S. can "form a more perfect union" starts this week.

The libraries from Canton, Avon, Simsbury, Farmington, and UConn Law (Hartford) libraries are collaborating on a lecture series just in time for the 250th birthday of the U.S. next year.

The first event in this free series will be held on Thursday, Nov. 20, at 7 p.m. at the Canton Community Center, 40 Dyer Ave.

It is called "To Form a More Perfect Union: The Power of We the People."

Future lectures will be held in early 2026, one hosted by each library.

Registration is requested to ensure adequate seating.

Guests should note that the Canton Public Library, which is housed in the same building, closes at 7 p.m.

The program will be held in Room F of the Canton Community Center. For those who arrive after the library is closed, the community center entrances will be open.

As for the topic on Thursday, the program will examine the preamble of the Constitution, which was written in 1787 and ratified a year later with the iconic reference to "a more perfect union."

"Since the Constitution was ratified in 1788, those words from the preamble have inspired generations of citizens to imagine what a more perfect union might look like and how we might achieve it," wrote event organizers.

The guest will be appellate lawyer Wesley W. Horton, who will discuss how the Declaration of Independence led to the writing and ratification of the U.S. Constitution, and how the Constitution continues to be a living document of guiding principles for the nation.

Horton is a graduate of Harvard College and the University of Connecticut School of Law, and the author or co-author of several scholarly publications and articles on legal topics.

.For more information on how to register for the program, click on this link.