Historic Buildings of Connecticut

Exploring the Nutmeg State One Building at a Time

Houses

84 Walnut Street, Willimantic (1887)

The building at 84 Walnut Street in Willimantic is small Queen Anne house, built in 1887, which displays decoration in the stick style. It one of the many Victorian era homes in Willimantic.

The Thomas Coit House (1782)

The house of merchant Thomas Coit, on Broadway in Norwich, was built in 1782 in a grand Georgian style, although some of the building’s elaborate decoration was added later under the influence of the Colonial Revival movement. Coit was a partner in a privateering firm during the Revolutionary War and in 1784 was Collector of Revenue in Norwich, serving under Christopher Leffingwell, from whom he had purchased the land to build his house. In 1798, he moved to Canterbury and the house was sold to Deacon Jabez Huntington. Records show that both of these first two residents of the house were slave owners.

The Timothy Hale, Jr. House (1740)

Built around 1740, the Timothy Hale, Jr. House is located on Main Street in Glastonbury. It was built by Timothy, Jr. on part of a parcel of land bought by his father. Hale was in the Connecticut militia during the Revolutionary War, serving as a Captain in 6th Regiment.

The Coite-Hubbard House (1856)

The building which now serves as Wesleyan’s President’s House was originally built in 1856 for Gabriel Coite, who became a state senator in 1860 and moved to Hartford in 1862, when he became the State Treasurer. In 1863, his Italianate house on High Street in Middletown was sold to Mrs. Jane Miles Hubbard, the widow of Samuel Hubbard, who had been a US Postmaster General. Wesleyan University acquired the Coite-Hubbard House from her heirs in 1904 to become the new President’s House, replacing the first building used for that purpose.

The Horace B. Cheney House (1895)

One of the Manchester mansions of the Cheney family of Silk Manufacturers, the Horace B. Cheney House was built in the mid-1890s. It has a Forest Street address and is also adjacent to the “Great Lawn,” where many of the mansion are located. Horace B. Cheney was the son of Frank Woodbridge Cheney and Mary Bushnell Cheney, the daughter of Horace Bushnell. His brothers were Ward, Howell, Austin and Frank D. Cheney.

Edward Savage House (1837)

The Greek Revival-style home of Edward Savage, on Main Street in Cromwell, was built in 1837. Savage had inherited half of his father’s farm and then bought the other half from his brother. He was also involved with manufacturing, founding the Savage Revolving Firearms Co. in 1858. The house was later significantly altered, with the addition of the cupola, porches and a new wing on the north side. Some of these changes were probably in response to the popularity of the Italianate style on Cromwell’s Main Street in the 1850s and 1860s.

The Bradford-Huntington House (1705)

A portion of what would later be known as the Bradford-Huntington House was built in Norwich on the home lot of John Bradford sometime prior to 1691 (perhaps as early as 1660, although a D.A.R. marker on the property gives the date as 1705). The house was bought by Capt. Joshua Huntington, a merchant, in 1719 (or by his father, Simon Huntington, in 1691). In later years he would enlarge and update the house in the Georgian style, adding a gambrel roof and a new chimney. The house was later owned (1745), and expanded with the addition of a rear ell, by his son, Jabez Huntington, who became Major General of the Connecticut militia in 1776, the same year George Washington spent a night in the home during the Revolutionary War. Later, Huntington experienced mental strain from his efforts and resigned in 1779. He died in 1786 and is buried near his house in the Old Norwichtown Cemetery.