Please note this program will be held at New Canaan Library, 151 Main Street, New Canaan, CT.

Old places have deep meaning. Attempts to change treasured old places, such as the White House and the view from Arlington Cemetery to the Lincoln Memorial, can spur people to action.

At New Canaan Library, Tom Mayes, the author of Why Old Places Matter and the former Chief Legal Officer for the National Trust, will share insights about the deep meaning of old places, from his work establishing The Glass House as a National Trust Historic Site to the legal battles over the civic architecture of Washington DC, all through the lens that places have the power to change people.

Tom Mayes is the former Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel for the National Trust for Historic Preservation. He has written and spoken widely on preservation law, the underlying purposes of historic preservation, and the future of preservation. For many years, he taught historic preservation law at the University of Maryland. A recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Rome Prize in Historic Preservation in 2013, Mr. Mayes is the author of Why Old Places Matter (Rowman and Littlefield, 2018).

Glass House Presents is an ongoing series of talks, performances, and other live events that extend the site’s historic role as a gathering place for artists, architects, and other creative minds. This event is co-hosted by New Canaan Library and supported in part by the New Canaan Community Foundation.