Historic Buildings of Connecticut - Exploring the Nutmeg State One Building at a Time

Universalist Church, New London (1882)

In 1879, Universalists in New London purchased land at the corner of Green and Starr Streets (formerly the site of the Stoll Marble Yard) to construct a church. Formed in 1835, the Universalist Society had previously built a church on Huntington Street in 1843-1844, which it occupied until 1849. They then purchased a former Episcopal church on Main Street, which they later sold, holding services in Allyn Hall until their new church was ready. Constructed under the direction of builder John Bishop (a member of the church who built many houses on neighboring Starr Street) and his brother Charles, the church was completed and dedicated in 1882. It was sold to the Brainard Lodge of Masons in 1896. Since 1997 it has been the Apostolic Cathedral of Hope. The windows were closed up in 1909, but have recently been restored with modern replacements.

Breed’s Tavern (1777)

Born in Stonington, John Breed (1752-1803) later settled in Colchester, where he married Lucy Bulkeley (born 1749) on 13 May 1773. He purchased land on Town Street (now South Main Street), then the main road between between New London and Hartford, and built a tavern in 1777. It had a large ballroom that extended the entire width of the house on the third floor. The Wooster Lodge of Masons met at the tavern between 1789 and 1801. Breed was also a gold and silversmith. After Breed died, his widow continued to operate the tavern until her own death in 1821. It was then purchased to become the residence of Elisha Avery, a wealthy Groton merchant and manufacturer. He died a year after buying the house (208 South Main Street), but it remained in his family for many generations. There is an old English Bank type barn on the property.

Eli Terry House (1793)

Eli Terry (1772-1852), the prominent inventor and clockmaker whose entrepreneurial family gave their name to Terryville in Plymouth, set up his first factory in what would become Plymouth on the Niagara Brook in 1793. The first house he built in Plymouth (c. 1793) is a colonial cape, located at 731 Main Street.

Eleazar Lord Tavern (1760)

In 1760, Eleazar Lord, Sr. deeded an acre of land at what is now 86 Town Street in Norwich to his son, Eleazar Lord, Jr., who proceeded to build a tavern (c. 1760-1770). Lord’s Tavern was also called the Compass House because it faces due north. The tavern popular with lawyers, who came to attend session at the court house which was located across the street. The tavern’s hooded entryway is a nineteenth-century addition. At various times, the ell of the building was used as a post office. Lord’s Tavern was in danger of being torn down in 1972. After a lengthy court battle, the building became the first purchase of the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation in 1976. Today the restored building is used for offices.

Derrin House (1810)

The Derrin House is a vernacular farmhouse at 249 West Avon Road in Avon. Its oldest sections may date to c. 1747 (could that be 1767?) and it was added to at least four times over the years. The most recent section of the house is closest to the road and the sign for the house reads c. 1810. It was built by the Derrin (or Derring) family. Little is known about the family other than that they built several houses along the same road in the western part of Avon in the eighteenth century on land they acquired in 1766. The house is located in Horse Guard State Park and is owned by the State of Connecticut Military Department for the First Company Governor’s Horse Guard, which is based across the street. The house is currently being restored by the Avon Historical Society.

Roswell Moore II House (1787)

Built around 1787, the house at 1166 Andrews Street in Southington was originally the home of Roswell Moore II (1761-1847). Known as Squire Moore, he married Lovina Phillips (1769-1843) in 1787 and they had twelve children. Roswell Moore, Esq. was a manufacturer of water-cement for more than 30 years, and of linseed oil and was also a large landowner. He served as Justice of the Peace and was a member of the state legislature for fourteen years. An interesting item appears in Resolves and Private Laws of the State of Connecticut from the Year 1789 to the Year 1836, Vol. III (1836). It reads:

RESOLVE ANNEXING ROSWELL MOORE AND HIS FARM TO THE TOWN OF SOUTHINGTON PASSED, MAY 1797.

Upon the petition of Roswell Moore, shewing that the dividing line between the towns of Southington and Berlin passes through his house and farm.

Resolved by this Assembly, That the said farm described in said petition as lying in the town of Berlin, be, and the same is hereby annexed to the town of Southington,” and that the petitioner be considered hereafter an inhabitant of said town of Southington, and as such entitled to all the privileges of an inhabitant thereof and liable to pay taxes therein.

After Rosewell Moore’s death, his son, Eli Moore (1801-1870), a farmer and cement manufacturer, lived in the house. Eli Moore was also a captain in the Southington Light Infantry Company. An article by Eli Moore, entitled “The Black Birch vs. the Tulip Tree,” appeared in The Horticulturalist, and Journal of Rural Art and Rural Taste, Vol. III, in 1853. The house was later sold to Dwight Smith (1847-1926).

Thomas Burgis IV House (1814)

The Federal-style house at 150 Boston Street in Guilford was built circa 1814, although it may have been built earlier as a center-chimney house and then altered. It was the home of Thomas Burgis IV (1770-1861). He married Sarah Deshon (1772-1852) in 1793 and had seven children.