List of the oldest buildings in Connecticut

This article lists the oldest buildings in the state of Connecticut, United States of America. The dates of construction are based on land tax and probate records, architectural studies, genealogy, radio carbon dating, and dendrochronology. Buildings on the list are limited to the First Period of American architecture (before 1725).

Building Image Location Built Notes
Henry Whitfield House Guilford 1639 Oldest surviving stone American Colonial house in New England, museum since 1899.[1]
Buckingham House Milford 1640 Core dates to 1640 modifications in 1725 and 1753. NRHP. [2][3]
Feake-Ferris House Greenwich 1645 Core dates to 1645 modifications in 1689.[4]
Thomas Lee House East Lyme 1660 Began as a one-room house, museum since 1897.[5]
Deacon John Moore House Windsor 1664 Crossing summer beams. Moore was also a woodworker known for using the foliated vine design, which depicts vines and blossoms carved in shallow relief with flat surfaces. NRHP.[6]
Acadian House Guilford 1670 Saltbox named after the Acadians who lived there following 1755 deportation from Canada. NRHP.[7][8]
Dr. Philip Turner House Norwich 1670 The house was occupied by American Revolutionary War surgeon Philip Turner.
Nehemiah Royce House Wallingford 1672 Saltbox, General George Washington slept here in 1775, once a residence for Choate Rosemary Hall.[9]
Leffingwell Inn Norwich 1675 Important meeting place during the American Revolutionary War.
Elisha Bushnell House Old Saybrook 1678 The Colonial property includes two contributing buildings, the second being termed the "Slave House".
Joshua Hempsted House New London 1678 One of the earliest documented houses in Connecticut, now a museum.[10]
Parker House Old Saybrook 1679 Early gambrel roof. The house remained in the Parker family until the 1960s. NRHP
John Hollister House Glastonbury 1680[11] Has hewn overhang with supporting corbels.
Thomas Wheeler House Bridgeport 1680[12] Located in Black Rock, an area with deep colonial maritime history. Core may date to 1644. 22" wide summer beams.
Deacon John Graves House Madison 1681 Saltbox saved from demolition and fully restored in 1983 by a private foundation, now a museum in Madison.[13]
Ephraim Hawley House Stratford 1683 Core is a 1+12-story Cape Cod cottage modified into a saltbox, hand-riven oak clapboard in situ in lean-to attic.
Ward-Heitman House West Haven 1684 Historic House Museum. NRHP.
John Randall House Stonington 1685 Notable for its restoration in the 1930s by early preservationist Norman Isham. NRHP.[14][15]
Samuel Harris House Middletown 1686[16] May be Middletown's oldest building. NRHP.
Loomis Homestead Windsor 1688[17] Part of Loomis Chaffee School, main house dates to 1688, with attached ell dating to some point between 1640 and 1688.[18][19][20]
Elisha Pitkin House Guilford 1690 Moved from East Hartford in 1955, interior retains many original 18th-century features. NRHP.[21]
Jonathan Murray House Madison 1690 Distinctive roof. NRHP.[22]
Meigs-Bishop House Guilford 1690 English tea room in Madison.[23]
Putnam Cottage Greenwich 1690 Also known as Knapp Tavern during the American Revolution.[24]
Bradford-Huntington House Norwich 1691 Gambrel home of American Revolutionary War officer Jabez Huntington. Claimed Huntington hosted George Washington here.
John Whittlesey Jr. House Old Saybrook 1693 Private residence. NRHP.
Comfort Starr House Guilford 1695 Original oak clapboard in lean-to attic, residence.[25] Dendrochronology in 2014 confirmed a construction date of 1695.[26]
Avery Homestead Ledyard 1696 Begun as a single-story, one-room house and later expanded to a two-story, two-room house by 1726.
General David Humphreys House Ansonia 1698 Home of the first U.S. Ambassador, now a museum. Partially rebuilt in 1733. NRHP.
Hoyt-Barnum House Stamford 1699 Early Cape Cod Cottage, Stamford Historical Society museum. NRHP.[27]
Stanton-Davis Homestead Museum Stonington 1700 A working farm for the last 350 years. NRHP.[28][29]
Eells-Stow House Milford 1700 Served as a hospital during Revolutionary War, now a museum.[30]
Shelley House Madison 1700 Dated to before 1700 by J. Frederick Kelly. Chamfered summer and girts with lambs-tongue stops[31]
Pratt House Essex 1701 Ell dating to 1701, according to museum site. Main block dates to 1732. NRHP.
Howd-Linsley House North, Branford 1705 Chamfered summer beams and beaded joists. NRHP
Abraham Coult House Glastonbury 1706 Saved from demolition and moved in 1972. NRHP.[32]
Clark Homestead Lebanon 1708 Lebanon's oldest building. NRHP.[33]
John Glover House Newtown 1708 Private residence. NRHP.[34]
Pelatiah Leete House Guilford 1710 Oldest surviving house belonging to Leete family. NRHP.[35]
Raymond-Bradford Homestead Montville 1710 Constructed by a woman, Mercy Sands Raymond, in the colonial period. NRHP.[36]
Strong House Coventry 1710 Historic house museum. NRHP.[37]
John Tyler House Branford 1710 Private residence, NRHP.
Buttolph-Williams House Wethersfield 1711 Connecticut Landmark museum.[38]
Solomon Goffe House Meriden 1711 Historic house museum, oldest building in Meriden. NRHP.[39]
Black Horse Tavern (Old Saybrook, Connecticut) Old Saybrook 1712 Private residence. NRHP.[40][41]
Hyland House Guilford 1713 Saltbox with framed overhang and flat plaster ceilings, now a museum.[42] Dendrochronology in 2014 confirmed a 1713 construction date.[43]
Keeler Tavern Ridgefield 1713 Fired upon during the Battle of Ridgefield in 1777. NRHP.[44]
Norton House Branford 1715 House was built in Madison and moved to Branford in 1940. NRHP.
Edward Waldo House Scotland 1715 Occupied by a single family for over 250 years, now owned by the local historical society.
Pequotsepos Manor Mystic 1717 House Museum with paired summer beams. Last house restored by architect J. Frederick Kelly[45]
Stanley-Whitman House Farmington 1720 Saltbox with framed overhang style with carved pendants, now a museum.[46]
Kimberly Mansion Glastonbury 1720 Home of political activists involved in causes including abolitionism and women's suffrage. NRHP.[47]
James Hazelton House Haddam 1720 Late First Period house. NRHP.[48]
Samuel Huntington Birthplace Scotland 1723 Saltbox home of a signer of the Declaration of Independence and Governor of Connecticut, now a museum.[49]
Jared Eliot House Guilford 1723 A well-preserved example of period residential architecture. NRHP.[50]
Captain David Judson House Stratford 1723 A fine example of early Georgian Architecture chimney and cellar date to 1638. NRHP.
Harrison House Branford 1724 Saltbox with overhang serves as the Branford Historical Society museum.[51]

References

edit
  1. ^ Historic Houses of Early America, Elsie Lathrop, Kessinger, New York, 2006 page 305 [1]
  2. ^ Federal Writer's Project, Federal Writer's Project, (Conn), (1938), p. 215
  3. ^ "Historic Buildings of Connecticut". October 2010. Archived from the original on 2023-03-01. Retrieved 2023-03-01.
  4. ^ "Rediscovering the Oldest House in Greenwich". 31 May 2018. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
  5. ^ "East Lyme Historical Society website retrieved on 2009-05-11". Archived from the original on 2009-04-06. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
  6. ^ "NRHP nomination for Deacon John Moore House". National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2021-04-16. Retrieved 2017-06-10.
  7. ^ "NRHP nomination for Acadian House". National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2021-04-16. Retrieved 2015-01-19.
  8. ^ Acadians-Guilford Albert Lafreniere website retrieved on 2009-05-13 website [2] Archived 2008-10-06 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ "Wallingford Historical Society website retrieved on 2009-05-11". Archived from the original on 2011-07-18. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
  10. ^ Connecticut Landmarks website retrieved on 2009-05-12 Archived 2008-12-08 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Kelly, J. Frederick (1924). The Early Domestic Architecture of Connecticut. p. 64.
  12. ^ "Wheeler House, Bridgeport". 24 April 2012. Archived from the original on 9 May 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  13. ^ "Deacon John Graves Foundation website retrieved on 2009-05-17". Archived from the original on 2010-02-15. Retrieved 2009-05-18.
  14. ^ "NRHP nomination for John Randall House". National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2021-04-16. Retrieved 2015-01-31.
  15. ^ "Historic Buildings of Connecticut website retrieved on 2021-04-16". 24 August 2017. Archived from the original on 2021-04-16. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  16. ^ "Connecticut Cultural Commission". State of Connecticut Cultural Commission.
  17. ^ Sizer, Theodore; Kelly, J. Frederick (December 1949). "Early Connecticut Meetinghouses". The New England Quarterly. 22 (4): 534. doi:10.2307/361951. ISSN 0028-4866. JSTOR 361951.
  18. ^ "Loomis Homestead (1640)" https://historicbuildingsct.com/loomis-homestead-1640/ Archived 2021-10-09 at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ Harriet E.B. Loomis, "Oldest Family in America to Hold Ancestral Estate in Perpetual Possession", The Connecticut Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly, (1906), p. 361
  20. ^ Derek Strahan, "Loomis Homestead, Winsor, Connecticut" (February 14, 2018) https://lostnewengland.com/2018/02/loomis-homestead-windsor-connecticut/ Archived 2021-01-21 at the Wayback Machine
  21. ^ "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Elisha Pitkin House". National Park Service. Archived from the original on April 16, 2021. Retrieved October 17, 2018. With accompanying five photos from 1978
  22. ^ "NRHP nomination for Jonathan Murray House". National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2021-06-10. Retrieved 2015-01-23.
  23. ^ Front Parlour website retrieved on 2009-05-13 Archived 2009-02-07 at the Wayback Machine
  24. ^ "Putnam Cottage website retrieved on 2009-05-23". Archived from the original on 2020-05-19. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  25. ^ Connecticut: A Guide to its Roads, Lore and People, Federal WPA Project, 1938 page 165 [3]
  26. ^ "Using Tree Rings to Date Historic Guilford Buildings". 19 October 2016. Archived from the original on 16 November 2016. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  27. ^ "Stamford Historical Society website retrieved on 2009-05-12". Archived from the original on 2008-10-15. Retrieved 2009-05-12.
  28. ^ "Stanton-Davis House". Archived from the original on 2018-08-23. Retrieved 2018-09-19.
  29. ^ [4] Archived 2021-04-16 at the Wayback Machine Historic Buildings of Connecticut website retrieved on 2021-04-16
  30. ^ Milford Historical website retrieved on 2009-05-12 Archived 2009-10-09 at the Wayback Machine
  31. ^ "National Register form". Archived from the original on 2021-04-20. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  32. ^ "NRHP nomination for Abraham Coult House". National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2021-06-11. Retrieved 2017-04-08.
  33. ^ "NRHP nomination for Clark Homestead". National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2021-06-11. Retrieved 2015-01-21.
  34. ^ Jan Cunningham (October 15, 2000). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: John Glover House". National Park Service. Archived from the original on June 11, 2021. Retrieved June 11, 2021. and Accompanying 13 photos, exterior and interior, from 2000
  35. ^ "NRHP nomination for Pelatiah Leete House". National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2021-04-16. Retrieved 2015-01-22.
  36. ^ "NRHP nomination for Raymond-Bradford Homestead". National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2021-06-11. Retrieved 2015-01-31.
  37. ^ "Coventry Historical Society website retrieved on 2021-04-15". Archived from the original on 2021-04-15. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  38. ^ "CT Landmarks website retrieved on 2009-05-11". Archived from the original on 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
  39. ^ Simmons, Gil (1 September 2011). "Oldest home in Meriden a time capsule". WTNH.com. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016.
  40. ^ NRHP Inventory-Nomination: Black Horse Tavern
  41. ^ Accompanying 10 photos, exterior and interior, from 1978
  42. ^ "Hyland House Museum website retrieved 2009-05-11". Archived from the original on 2009-05-02. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
  43. ^ "Using Tree Rings to Date Historic Guilford Buildings". 19 October 2016. Archived from the original on 16 November 2016. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  44. ^ David F. Ransom and John Herzan (January 16, 1983). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Ridgefield Center Historic District". National Park Service. Archived from the original on April 15, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2023. and Accompanying 28 photos, exterior and interior, from 1982, 1983, and 1984
  45. ^ "Home". denisonhomestead.org. Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
  46. ^ "HOME - Stanley Whitman House". stanleywhitman.org. Archived from the original on 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  47. ^ Robert C. Post (August 15, 1983). National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Smith Sisters House / Kimberly Mansion (pdf). National Park Service. Archived from the original on April 15, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2023. Smith Sisters House / Kimberly Mansion--Accompanying 3 photos, exterior, from 1973. (1.18 MB)
  48. ^ Jan Cunningham and John Herzan (December 9, 1987). "NRHP Registration: James Hazelton House / Hazelton-Hayden House". National Park Service. and Accompanying nine photos, exterior and interior, from 1987
  49. ^ "Samuel Huntington Birthplace website retrieved on 2009-05-11". Archived from the original on 2009-02-25. Retrieved 2009-05-12.
  50. ^ "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Jared Eliot House". National Park Service. Archived from the original on August 13, 2018. Retrieved August 12, 2018. With accompanying pictures
  51. ^ "Branford Historical Society website retrieved 2009-05-11". Archived from the original on 2008-12-24. Retrieved 2009-05-11.