Historic Buildings of Connecticut

Exploring the Nutmeg State One Building at a Time

Houses

Bryan-Downs House (1785)

The first residents of the Bryan-Downs House, originally located on the Post Road between Milford and New Haven, were Jehiel Bryan, Jr. wed Mary Treat, who were married in April, 1784. It was then the home of their daughter, Mary Esther, and her husband, Ebenezer Downs. Their son, Ebenezer Jr., inherited in 1837 and made a number of major changes to the house, replacing the original stone chimney with a smaller one and remodeling the interior. After Ebenezer’s death in 1873, the family rented out the house, which was later dismantled and stored for several years. In 1977, it was erected on the Milford Historical Society property, where today it forms part of the Wharf Lane complex of historic houses.

William Augustus Erving House (1880)

Located on the West Hartford side (across from the Hartford side) of Prospect Avenue, at #825, is the William Augustus Erving House. It is an elaborate Queen Anne residence, built in 1880 for William Augustus Erving, who was, at that time, secretary of the Hartford County Mutual Fire Insurance Company. His father, Daniel Dodge Erving, had previously served as president of the company and William Augustus Erving became president himself in 1917. According to A Century in Hartford, a history of the company, published in 1931,

Large and well proportioned, he maintained his fine physical vigor mainly by walking; he seldom missed his “morning constitutional” from his home on Prospect avenue to the office, a distance of three miles.

Erving’s brother, Henry Wood Erving, chairman of the board of the Connecticut River Banking Company, lived in a similar house next door.

William Bush House (1836)

The William Bush House, at 18 North Street in Milford, is a well-preserved example of the Greek Revival style. Built in 1836, it is a gable-to-street temple form house with a one-story Ionic colonnade across the front facade.

736 Palisado Avenue, Windsor (1865)

The mid-nineteenth century house at 736 Palisado Avenue in Windsor is a good example of the French Second Empire style, including a mansard roof. The exact date of construction (perhaps around 1865?) and the original owner of the house are unknown; the earliest known owner is John Kelley in 1885.

55 Hayward Avenue, Colchester (1842)

The Greek Revival house at 55 Hayward Avenue in Colchester was built in the 1840s (perhaps 1842, the same year as the adjacent house at 63 Hayward Ave). Both houses were later owned by he Hayward family. The earliest listed owner of the house was B. Brown in 1854. The house has a twentieth-century rear addition.

33 Grove Street, Rockville (1865)

Built around 1865, the house at 33 Grove Street in Rockville in Vernon is good example of a Gothic Revival cottage. An early resident was Thomas Burt, a millwright. By the turn of the century it was the home of the widow of Patrick H. Kernan, who had operated a meat market. The house’s current front porch is a twentieth century addition.

St. John-Ashwell House (1742)

In 1742, Jonathan Huested purchased a newly built house, on what is now Park Street in New Canaan, from Henry Inman. The house was next owned by Lt. David St. John. It was later home to the Lieutenant’s granddaughter, Hannah, who married the Congregational minister, Rev. Theophilus Smith in 1831. Her brother, Dr. Samuel St. John, was born in the house in 1813. A notable scientist, he was a professor at the Western Reserve College in Ohio and later the Cleveland Medical College. He later returned to New Canaan, serving for twenty years as Professor of Chemistry at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of New York, and lived in a house across from the old St. John House. A few months before his death, he gave a Historical Address in the Congregational Church on the Centennial, July 4, 1876. The old house remained in St. John family until it was sold to Helen M. Ashwell in 1919. The entrance was originally on the north side, but the current front door faces Park Street.