Maxwell E. Perkins House (1836)

The Greek Revival-style house at 63 Park Street in New Canaan was constructed by local builder Hiram Crissey in 1836. The most famous resident of the house was Maxwell E. Perkins, the legendary editor of such writers as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and Thomas Wolfe. Perkins bought the house, which is half a block from New Canaan Metro-North Station, in 1924 and lived there until his death in 1947. His widow Louise lived in the house until her death in 1965: she had fallen asleep smoking in bed and started a fire which gutted part of the building. It was then subdivided into apartments by the Perkins’ daughter. In 1973, the house was acquired by Richard and Sandra Bergmann, who restored it over seven years. Richard Bergmann is an architect whose firm is based in the house.