Historic Buildings of Connecticut

Exploring the Nutmeg State One Building at a Time

Towns

Hendrie Hall (1894)

Hendrie Hall, named in honor of John William Hendrie, was originally built in two sections to house Yale’s Law School. The earlier rear section was built in 1894 and the remainder in 1900. Designed by the architects Cady, Berg & See of New York in the Renaissance Revival style, with a facade resembling a Venetian palazzo, Hendrie Hall was intended to be the first of several grand Yale buildings along Elm Street. In the end, these were never built and the street’s much older wooden houses have survived. Since the Law School moved in 1931, the building has served various purposes and currently houses student music groups and offices.

Also, check out today’s entry at Historic Buildings of Massachusetts: Boston’s Old City Hall of 1865!

Ebenezer W. Beckwith House (1854)

Built on Prospect Hill Road in Cromwell in 1854, the Ebenezer W. Beckwith House is one of very few Octagon houses in Connecticut. The house served as a residence and boarding school, which by 1866 was known as the Mineral Springs Military Institute. Later, the house was rented by Dr. Winthrop B. Hallock as a retreat for the insane. In 1887, Hallock purchased the house from Beckwith’s daughter and it became the main structure of the private sanitorium known as Cromwell Hall. After Cromwell Hall closed in the 1950s, the house became the administration building for Holy Apostles College and Seminary. Various additions have been added to the building over the years, including the porte-cochere.

Judah Woodruff House (1760)

Judah Woodruff, a descendant of Matthew Woodruff, one of the original proprietors of Farmington, fought in the French and Indian War and was a captain in the Revolutionary War. He was also a builder who constructed the First Church and 21 houses in Farmington, including his own. The Judah Woodruff House, on Mountain Spring Road, was built in 1760 and features a Connecticut River Valley doorway.

The Samuel N. Kellogg House (1877)

Built around 1877, the Samuel N. Kellogg House, on Washington Street in Hartford, is the only survivor from the time when the area was a leafy and elegant neighborhood called “Governor’s Row.” This fairly restrained Second Empire-style house was built for Samuel N. Kellogg, who was a brother-in-law of the retired dry goods merchant and Hartford financier Francis Cooley.

Griswoldville Chapel (1872)

Griswoldville is a section of Wethersfield. In the nineteenth century, when the weather was bad, residents of the area often had to contend with a difficult journey to reach First Church for Sunday services. In 1872, a chapel and Sunday school building was constructed to serve Griswoldville. Men and oxen hauled the stones used for the foundation from Cromwell. In 1880, a Ladies Chapel Society was founded, which supported the chapel by holding various events to raise money.

Ruth Callander House (1715)

The Ruth Callander House, also known as the White-Overton-Callander House, is on Main Street in Portland and was built around 1715 by Nathaniel White. The house was later expanded with a rear section to cover the well. Ruth Callander was a resident of the house in the twentieth century. She was a charter member of the Portland Historical Society and upon her death she bequeathed her house to become a museum of the town’s history. It opened to the public in June 2003 as the Ruth Callander House Museum of Portland History.

Second Church of Christ Scientist [Hartford] (1927)

The Georgian Revival-style Second Church of Christ Scientist, located off Columbus Green in Hartford, was designed by the architects Isaac A. Allen & Son and was built over several years in 1920s. The foundation was finished in 1924 and in 1927, with assistance from William A. Boring, the remaining superstructure was completed. The interior dates to 1929. Like such neighboring buildings as the Connecticut State Library and Supreme Court, the church was part of an attempt to create a setting in keeping with the “City Beautiful” movement of the early twentieth century.