What it is
We bring together the local information that is usually scattered across town websites, Facebook pages, newsletters, flyers, organization calendars, business websites and good old-fashioned word of mouth — then organize it into one simple place.
Because local life is better when you know where the good stuff lives.
Our home base is the Connecticut shoreline and Connecticut River Valley, including Essex, Old Saybrook, Old Lyme, Chester, Deep River, Westbrook, Clinton, Niantic and surrounding communities.
Built for locals
55andMain was created with adults 55+ in mind, but it isn't a “senior directory.” It's for people who want to get out, stay curious and be connected to the communities around them.
That might mean finding a great restaurant, a pickleball game, a garden club pop-up, a farmers market, a concert on the green, an interesting shop, a museum afternoon, a volunteer opportunity, a local service you actually need, or something fun to do when the grandkids come to visit.
Sometimes it means discovering something five minutes from home that you somehow never knew was there.
A little bit of Big Ed
There's some family history behind 55andMain.
Big Ed believed a good day was an adventure waiting to happen. He'd fill his van with his kids, their cousins and friends and head out to see what they could find. He fixed things, made things, taught things and was endlessly curious. Later, he did the same with his grandchildren.
The destination wasn't really the point.
It was getting out there. Trying something. Learning something. Bringing somebody along. Being present for it.
That spirit found its way into 55andMain.
We think communities are more fun when you explore them, people are more connected when they participate in them, and some of the best experiences are hiding remarkably close to home. So yes, we organize information. But what we really hope to organize are more excuses to get out and live a little.
One place. Many kinds of local life.
You'll find events and activities, restaurants and food, shops, arts and culture, fitness and recreation, community organizations, volunteer opportunities, local services, parks and outdoor spaces, classes and programs, local benefits and resources — and plenty of things we haven't discovered yet. That's part of the fun.
Curated by locals, for locals
55andMain isn't trying to catalog everything on the internet. We focus on the places, organizations, events, resources and experiences that make a community useful, interesting and fun.
That means combining technology with something algorithms aren't particularly good at: knowing a place.
We collect, organize and verify information from local businesses, nonprofit organizations, community groups, municipalities and other trusted sources, with help from people who actually know these communities.
Our goal is simple: make good local information easier to find and easier to keep accurate.
Why 55andMain exists
There isn't a shortage of local information. It's just all over the place.
The same event might appear on a Facebook post, a town calendar and a paper flyer taped to a library door. A terrific community program might be buried three pages into a website. A local organization may have wonderful things happening but no easy way to get that information in front of the people who would love to know about it.
We're fixing that.
Over time, that same information can help local organizations spend less time updating the same details in multiple places and more time doing the things that make our communities worth living in.
Why 55?
We started with people 55 and older because they're often right in the middle of local life. They're residents, volunteers, customers, organizers, caregivers, grandparents, neighbors and, quite often, the person who knows about the little concert happening Saturday that everyone else missed.
But 55 isn't a requirement. It's a starting point.
Bring the kids. Bring the grandkids. Bring a friend. Bring the dog when appropriate.
If you're curious about what's happening around here, you're one of us.