Frank C. Fowler House (1890)

The house at 30 Plains Road, on the east side of the Moodus Green in East Haddam, was built c. 1890. It was the home of Frank C. Fowler. Born in 1859, Fowler served in the state General Assembly in 1897. According to his biography in Taylor’s Legislative History and Souvenir of Connecticut for 1897-1898, “Since 1882 he has been prosperously engaged in the manufacture of proprietary remedies, and is also proprietor of the well known Oak Grove Stock Farm.” He is further described as, “an ardent sportsman owning one of the largest game preserves in the country, and has given attention to the propagation and protection of our native game.” He also built a harness race track on the flats above the Green. Fowler’s 110′ yacht the Huntress was commissioned by the navy in 1898 for duty in the Spanish-American War.

3 Lester Avenue, Pawcatuck (1857)

At 3 Lester Avenue in Pawcatuck is a two-family Italianate-style house built in 1857. The nomination for the Mechanic Street Historic District lists the building as a Masonic Hall, so it may have been used at some point by Pawcatuck Lodge No. 90. Chartered in 1863, the Lodge met for a time in the Pawcatuck Hotel and later at other locations. For many years the Lodge shared space with Franklin Lodge No. 20 of Westerly, Rhode Island. More recently, the Pawcatuck Lodge merged with Asylum Lodge No. 57 of Stonington and Charity & Relief Lodge No. 72 of Mystic to form Costal Lodge No. 57.

Masonic Temple, Mystic (1911)

At 7 Gravel Street in Mystic is a building erected in 1911-1912 as a Masonic Temple for Charity & Relief Lodge No. 72. The Lodge had its origins as Charity Lodge No. 68, formed in 1825, which first met in Gurton Bill’s Tavern in Groton. The Lodge was inactive from 1846 to 1850 due to its members unwillingness to move to Mystic. After this move took place, the Lodge met on the Stonington side and then on the Groton side of the Mystic River. A split led to the creation in 1869 of Relief Lodge No. 71 on the other side of the river. Charity Lodge lost its rooms in the Central Hall Building on West Main Street due to a fire in 1880 and were invited to used Relief Lodge’s rooms until new quarters were found. The two lodges reunited in 1891-1892 to form Charity and Relief Lodge #72. After almost of century on Gravel Street, the Lodge faced declining membership and the lack of parking. It merged with Asylum Lodge No. 57 and Pawcatuck Lodge No. 90 to form Costal Lodge No. 57, which meets on Pequot Trail in Stonington. In January 2008, the former Masonic Temple on Gravel Street was sold to developers, who converted the building into two condominium units by 2010.

Guilford Smith House (1877)

Guilford Smith (1839-1923), who left his childhood home in South Windham to become a library, built his own house nearby in 1877. Located at 9 Main Street, it is an elaborately decorated Victorian residence. According to a biography of Smith in Legislative History and Souvenir of Connecticut, Vol. VII (1910):

Guilford Smith, of Windham, who was horn in South Windham. May 12, 1839, is the son Charles and Mary A. Smith, and is descended from Governor William Bradford of the Mayflower colony. He was educated in the public schools of his native town and at Hall’s School at Ellington. When nineteen years of age, he entered the office of Smith, Winchester & Co., as a clerk, passing through all the departments. Upon the death of his father, he succeeded him, being now president and treasurer of the now The Smith. Winchester Mfg. Co. He is also president of the Windham National Bank of Willimantic, a director of the New London and Northern Railway, and president of St. Joseph’s Hospital, Willimantic. On December 16, 1863, Mr. Smith married Mary Ramsdall. daughter of Thomas and Mary Elizabeth (Lathrop) Ramsdall. He is one of the leading citizens of South Windham, is active in church and civil affairs, has represented his town in the General Assembly in 1883, and filled various local official stations. He is a member of the Ecclesiastical Society of the Congregational Church, whose house of worship was built chiefly at his expense. He is also a member of the Society of Mayflower descendants. He faithfully served as a member of the Committee on Banks [in the State Assembly].

Ivoryton Congregational Church (1888)

In the mid-nineteenth century, Ivoryton in Essex developed as a factory village around Comstock, Cheney & Company, manufacturers of products made from ivory. The heirs of company founder Samuel Merritt Comstock, under the leadership of Harriet Comstick, erected the Comstock Memorial Chapel in 1887-1888. As a mission of the Centerbrook Congregational Church, the Chapel allowed church members in Ivoryton to attend services closer to their homes. In 1898 the building became the property of the new Ivoryton Congregational Church, which had become a separate church from the one in Centerbrook. The Ivoryton Church, located at 57 Main Street, was enlarged in 1906. In 2017, the congregation, which now has approximately 25 active members, decided to put the church building on the market. It was acquired by a developer who plans to convert the building into condominiums. The final service in the church was held on October 1, 2017. The congregation now holds services at the Essex Congregational Church.

Deacon Darius Knight House (1825)

The house at 93 Chaplin Street in Chaplin has been dated variously to 1840, 1832 and 1825. It was the home of Deacon Darius Knight. The house next south on Chaplin Street, just past the intersection with Tower Hill Road (87 Chaplin Street), was the home of E. W. Day, so the intersection became known as Knight and Day Corner. The Knight House was later home to a minister and a doctor.

Old Basket Shop, Silvermine (1850)

The historic structure at 187 Perry Avenue, in the Silvermine section of Norwalk, was built c. 1850. It is located along the Silvermine River, just next to the Perry Avenue Bridge. Often called the Blacksmith Shop, it was used as a basketmaker’s shop in the later nineteenth century and is now a residence. Frank Townsend Hutchens, a painter, purchased the building in 1913 and it has since been owned by a succession of singers, writers, and sculptors over the years, including Tony Balcom, an etcher, painter and illustrator and a founder of the Silvermine Guild of Artists in 1922.