Reynolds-Beers House (1786)

The Reynolds-Beers House is a Dutch gambrel-roofed historic home, owned by the Town of North Branford since 1997 and operated as a museum by the Totoket Historical Society. Located at 1740 Foxon Road, the house was erected in 1786 by Hezekiah Reynolds (1756-1833), who later moved to Wallingford. A painter, he was the author of Directions for House and Ship Painting (1812). By the 1930s, the house was owned by Earle Beers. There are two ells on the rear, or east, side of the house, added at different times in the nineteenth century. The south ell is in the Greek Revival style.

Fairfield Country Day School (1891)

Timothy Dwight (1752-1817) was a Congregational minister, author and educator. Before becoming president of Yale University in 1795, Dwight served as minister of the Greenfield Hill Congregational Church in Fairfield from 1783 to 1795. He also started a well-respected academy in Greenfield Hill in 1783-1784. His 1794 poem, Greenfield Hill, references “Fair Verna,” the name he gave to his house and farm in Greenfield Hill. Isaac Bronson purchased Verna Farm in 1796 and it was later inherited by his son, Frederic Bronson. Dwight’s eighteenth-century house was eventually torn down in 1891 by Frederic’s son, Frederic Bronson, Jr., a wealthy New York City lawyer, who commissioned architect Richard Morris Hunt to design a grand new house on the site. Bronson also had a windmill built on his property in 1893-1894. After his death, Verna was the home of his daughter, Elizabeth Duer Bronson (1877–1914), and her husband, Lloyd Carpenter Griscom (1872-1959), an influential lawyer and diplomat: during Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency, he served successively as ambassador to Iran, Japan, Brazil and Italy. In 1933, the Bronson estate was acquired by W. A. Morschhauser, who had the house remodeled and made smaller in 1900: the third story was removed and the number of rooms was reduced from 42 to 13. Since 1949, the house, located at 2970 Bronson Road, has been occupied by the Fairfield Country Day School.

David Mallett Jr. House (1760)

The David Mallett Jr. House is an exceptionally well-preserved center-chimney colonial farmhouse, located at 420 Tashua Road in Trumbull, directly across from Christ Episcopal Church and Tashua Burial Ground. The Mallett family were prominent citizens in Trumbull in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, building many houses in the Tashua District: by 1867, 13 of the 36 homes in Tashua were owned by members of the family. David Mallett, Jr. (1735-1822) built his house in 1760, the year of his marriage to Rhoda French (1740-1777). He was a farmer and innkeeper. It was a difficult time for farmers in Connecticut and Mallett economized where he could. The house was built with little decorative ornamentation and Mallett displayed Yankee thrift by later reusing a former Sabbath Day House to provide an addition on the west side. This was done to accommodate his youngest son Aaron at the time of his marriage in 1805. The original entrance to the house may have been on the west side and was moved to its current placement when the addition was made. A larger addition on the east side of the house may also be a reused earlier building. Aaron Mallett (1771-1855) inherited the house after his father’s death.

Carroll-Burney House (1890)

The house at 90 Central Avenue in East Hartford was built c. 1890. Patrick Garvan had acquired the land in 1871 from Edward Hayden. (It was one of four lots Garvan purchased at the time–the house at 86 Central Avenue would be built c. 1899 on another of the four lots). Joseph E. Carroll, a carpenter and builder, acquired the land and built the house, most likely as a speculation. About 1894, the house was acquired by the Burney sisters, who became its first residents. The house has an L-shaped plan with a tower nestled between the two wings.

Utley-Hubbard House (1830)

The house at 127 Chaplin Street in Chaplin was built c. 1830 (with an ell added c. 1840) for James Russell Utley (1811-1896), a farmer who had a 1,500 acre farm and whose brother, John Kingsbury Utley, lived next door. James R. Utley also served in the state assembly in 1866. In 1938, the Hubbard family moved to the house (also known as the Holt House) and farm from New Britain. After her parents death, Mary MacNaughton Hubbard (called Mollie) lived in the house until 1987. A nature enthusiast, she worked as a scientific illustrator and an academic advisor in the Biology Department at the University of Connecticut. In 1985, Mollie Hubbard donated 38 acres in Chaplin to Joshua’s Trust. The land is known as Hubbard Sanctuary. She also donated land to the Town of Chaplin for its town offices and Edward Garrison Park.

Charles H. Smith House (1882)

At 53 Pearl Street in Noank is a Victorian house built in 1882. It is known as the Charles H. Smith House. This may be the same Charles H. Smith described in the Legislative History and Souvenir of Connecticut, Vol. VII, 1909-1910:

Charles H. Smith, of Noank, town of Groton. and a native of that town. was born September 10. 1851. He received his education in the public schools of Noank, and 0n November 16, 1872. married Mary E. Potter, who died June 9, 1905. Mr. Smith began the business of boat and yacht building thirtyfive years ago and by industry and honest dealing, built up a large business. About five years ago be disposed of this business to the firm of Smith & Barry. and is now retired. Mr. Smith has always been a staunch Republican, and enjoys the fullest confidence and esteem of his fellow-citizens. regardless of party affiliations. He is a conservative man and uses his thorough knowledge of public affairs to the best advantage. and his advice is frequently sought in public as well as in private affairs. He has been a member of the General Assembly three terms, in 1891-92, serving as a member of the Committee on Fisheries, in 1895-96, being chairman of the same committee. and this session he was a member of the Committee on Fish and Game.

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