Known as “The Orchard,” the Gen. Gold Selleck Silliman House is located at 506 Jennings Road in Fairfield. A general in the Revolutionary War, Silliman took part in the Battle of Ridgefield in 1777. In May 1779, Silliman and his son were captured in their home by a party of tories who had crossed Long Island Sound in the night. U.S. Navy Captain David Hawley later captured Thomas Jones, a highly reputed loyalist, to exchange for Silliman a year after his capture. Gen. Silliman‘s house was also used as a place of refuge by citizens fleeing the British burning of Fairfield on July 8, 1779. Gen. Silliman’s son, Benjamin Silliman, became the first professor of science at Yale University and the first to distill petroleum.
Gen. Gold Selleck Silliman House (1756)
I’ve been working on making the Henry Austin wikipedia page more thorough. I’d love to have your imput on it, since I use your website quite a bit. The photos are not the best, so I will try and get some today that show the buildings better, although pesky trees will make that somewhat difficult. I hope you enjoy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Austin_(architect)
Intresting house! Intresting man! Intresting history! Are there tours of the house available?
It’s a private home.
I enjoy all your posts of Fairfield homes. Have you considered doing a post on the Fairfield home at 110 Elm Street? It was supposedly built by Samuel Wakeman around 1784, and it derives its name (“Bridal Elms”) from the two massive elms that were planted by Wakeman and his bride, Sally Burr, when they were married. The elms are long gone, but the house remains — and it retains much of its historic charm. Something to consider…
I’d love it if someone would do a post at my home on Elm Street . I’d also like to know more history on my house since there is not too much I’ve been able to find in the 40 years I’ve lived in this great house !
That’s my mom above ^. We’d love to have anybody interested in our home (Bridal Elms) to contact us for a full tour. Thank You for interest. It’s a pretty cool place with wonderful history. Items exhumed from the grounds are also available to check out. Tons of cool history.
Todd Marshall
Todd4marshall@gmail.com
was informed by a fairfield realtor in 1978 that a fireplace opens to stairs leading to a small room in which to hide !!!
Hi. I wish that were true . I’d love to hear more about that story .
Please let me know who saw a hidden room or who it was that told you that interesting story . I’d love for it to be true but I just can’t imagine where it could be . Anything is possible !
I live in this house, and have done so since 1995. There is no secret room, but there is a little doorway next to a fireplace that reveals a small storage area (near an attic staircase), which was probably used for firewood.
As this is a private home, no tours are available. Nice to see so much interest in Fairfield’s historical homes.
Hello. Is this the same house that appears in The Connecticut Society of the Sons of the American Revolution under Silliman with a 1890s photo? House looks the same but porch is hip. Thank you in advance for your help.
Yes, it is the same house. The porch was removed probably prior to the 1950s. Jennings Road was also widened.