USA > Connecticut > New London County > Stonington > Old homes in Stonington : with additional chapters and graveyard inscriptions > Part 3
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Here we are on the front side again and yonder across the way, un- protected from the gales of Heaven by tree, shrub or vine, stands the old Church upon that little eminence of perfect sterility; within, with- out and around, all was an exact personification of barrenness. The church then had no porch, but one great barny door opened directly into the one and only apartment. The pulpit of ancient date, the pews uncarpeted, unstooled, bookless and fanless, were square and sufficient- ly large to accommodate some twelve or fifteen persons. No cushions were there, we sat softly upon the smooth side of pine boards. Two flights of stairs in the southeast and southwest corners served to trans- port the singers and other high-minded ones to the upper regions. The bannisters of these aerial passages were open, which was positively pleasing to the ladies especially when they chanced to be late and were obliged to ascend in face of the audience. Not a particle of paint or varnish had ever dimmed the woody luster of this venerable edifice, internally or externally; no, the neutral beauty of the original was
:
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OLD HOMES IN STONINGTON
there. In summer a July or August sun would pour its sultry rays so unsparingly through those great, unblinded windows, that very little extension of the imagination was required to fancy ourselves in New Granada, for a dazzling glare seemed to come in at every window, and our boundary on the four sides one entire blaze, but in winter we were decidly cool, and the few present in one sense collected, there was no fire or even convenience for one, not a single ray of warmth, save the little emerging from the pale hues of a wintry sun, as they fitfully struggled through the bright frost work upon the window panes. The door of the church being secured only by a latch, permitted the public to enter whenever they chose. The ground all about wore nearly the same aspect in summer as in winter, the grass brown, dry and crisp; the few dwarf weeds and shrubs by the fence side looking as if they had been bitten by an early frost or had been recently visited by Pharaoh's locust legions; scarcely a green thing could be seen, and yet it was not unusual on a Sunday morning to find a flock of sheep, in single solemn file making various perambulations about these sacred premises, but why they were there, no mortal could tell, unless perhaps as a kind of Botany Bay punishment for some act of disloyalty to their rightful sovereign. An amusing story used to be told about a truant wind blowing open the church door, and some sheep going in, and hold- ing several nightly conferences.
A few paces east of the church and in the same lot upon a ledge of rocks, there used to be and of course now is (the foundation being upon a rock) a schoolhouse, which in convenience and architecture was a genuine old settler, but it is, however, a memorable place to me for the first singing school I ever attended was in that house, and there too dawned the morning of my teaching career. A little way south stood Uncle Graves' Cottage, where some people called to "fix" Sunday mornings before entering church, instead of going to the Tavern."
And with a few family matters this letter closes, to be continued in other letters, but they cannot now be found much to our regret, for the intention of the writer was to carry one to Mystic, and doubtless much would have been learned of the old houses and their occupants, which now will ever remain a closed door. This letter is signed by Miss Grace Stanton, written in 1852, of the memories of her youth here, making this description nearly a hundred years old as she was born in 1800.
The present church parlors, a little east of the church, was formerly a gambrel roof, half house, probably built by one of Rev. James Noyes' sons. It was occupied by many different families, and many of them were Noyes, all descendants of our first minister, the Rev. James. About seventy-five years ago Mr. John D. Noyes sold it to Mr. Nathan Noyes, who married the daughter of Edward Sparger of Newport. They had a large family of children and lived here and in several other houses near the church. Mr. Noyes was both witty and keen, and many humorous stories are accredited to him. Among them ,that one day his minister, Rev. Ira Hart, while walking through the woods going to the Dean's Mills, lost his way, but happening to come upon Mr. Noyes, who
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was chopping his firewood, Mr. Hart enquired of him, "If he could tell him where he was?" to which Mr. Noyes facetiously replied, "Yes, sir, you are on the north side of a white oak tree," which answer, we can imagine, provoked much merriment. After a time Mr. Noyes and wife moved to Mount Pleasant. Here, also, lived Aunt Hannah Graves, quiet and alone, the last of her family, and after her death, it was pur- chased by Miss Emma A. Smith, who gave it to the 1st Congregational Society, and by gifts of money and articles from the many friends of the church and descendants of the old members, and by the sale of souvenir spoons, enough was raised to entirely remodel it inside and out, so it is now used for entertainments and social gatherings con- nected with the church.
CHURCH PARIORS.
Just south of this house, a small house was built in 1694 for Rev. James Noyes to warm himself, between meetings; this was afterwards made into a schoolhouse. East of this house, for a long time, stood a variety store where everything from good cloth to small wares was sold. This store faced the road and had its half door and large show windows with their small panes of glass. It was kept for a time by Mr. Nathan Wheeler, who lived for a while a few rods below, in the old wood-colored house now standing, with the date 1777 showing dis- tinctly in the stone chimney, which is in plain sight from the road on the west side of the house, now owned and occupied by almost the last of the Pequot tribe.
East of where the old Tavern stood is a house set within a pleasant yard, and shaded by some fine old elms, which though added to and renovated several times was originally built about 1730, by Mr. Elias Babcock, a lawyer, who after a time moved to Pawcatuck and sold the house to the Hobarts. The survivor of this family was Aunt Fanny,
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who lived for years alone in this house, except for a large cat which usually sat contentedly purring in the sunshine which streamed over the bright striped carpet, which was on the floor of her keeping room, having been made by her own hands, and the fire on the hearth with Aunt Fanny sitting complacently before it, in her large figured gown, with a broad ruffled cap on her head, was a picture of cheerful content- ment which once seen was not soon forgotten. She was a grand type of the New England woman of a century ago, always a faithful attendant at church, where in her pew, near the pulpit, she could be plainly seen by all, and the size and shape of her old style bonnet proved very im- pressive to the children, who were fond of her, and nearly every Sab- bath afternoon some of them visited her or remained over from church
THE BAKER HOUSE.
services to attend the concert which was held every month, on the Sunday evening nearest the full moon. This place is now owned by Mr. Charles S. Noyes, and has been much improved by him.
Following the road to the east but a short distance, used to stand a house, built in 1750, in which Mr. Enoch Stanton lived who married Waity Dyer. He was a silversmith and had his shop here, but was killed at the massacre of Fort Griswold, and on April 8th, 1783, his widow sent the following order to Capt. William Latham, "Sir, please to send me by the bearer hereof, Mr. Zebulon Stanton, the sum of Fifty pounds of my deceased husband (Lieut. Enoch Stanton's) wages for his service in Fort Griswold and his receipt shall discharge you from the same." Signed Wait Stanton. Mrs. Stanton sold this house after a time, and it was taken down about 1800, and became the property of Elder Elihu Chesebrough, who rebuilt it east of the Borough of Ston- ington.
Mr. Amos Gallup also had his blacksmith shop just east of this
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house, when he began housekeeping at the Road, and a little recess on the north side, in the highway, marks the spot, while further up the road, nearly opposite the church, has been found debris from another old blacksmith shop, where at some earlier time horses were shod.
But a short distance east of this Stanton ground, stands the house built about 1710 by Edward Denison and his son John, whose first wife, Anna, was drowned in the well, which can now be seen by the roadside, southeast of the house as you are driving along the highway. This house is still in good order and bids fair to stand a hundred years longer, although now nearly two hundred years old. It is a large double house, facing the south, the east side being broader than the west, which has only one window at the south, while on the right of the front door, the room is large and square with two windows at the
MR. CHARLES S. NOYES HOUSE.
south. In this room, is the old fashioned corner cupboard, which was enclosed by a circular bar, one half of which was movable and allowed the bar tender to move back and forth as he served his customers. The entire upper story on the west side was once a dancing hall, with a swinging partition in the middle which could be fastened up at will, and the hooks are still in the ceiling, although the partition has been made stationary. Mr. Denison sold this house and a small lot of land in 1760, to Col. Giles Russell of Wethersfield. He was a graduate of Yale College and a lawyer, being admitted to the bar in Hartford, Ct. Soon after he came to Stonington, he was appointed Captain of a com- pany of fifty-five Conn. and R. I. men in the expedition against Havana under Admiral Pococke and Lord Albemarle, of whom only sixteen men reached home alive. He was married soon after his return, to Prudence Stanton, and when his law business increased, he built a lean-to on the east side of this house for an office, and afterwards in-
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creased it to its present size. In 1763 he was appointed Tavern Keeper there, and continued so till he entered the Army of the American Rev- olution as Lieut. Col. in the 3rd Battalion, Wadsworth Brigade, which was raised in 1776 to reinforce Washington at New York. He was also in the French and Indian War, and died from effects of service in 1779, and is buried in the Road Cemetery, where the Society of the Children of the Revolution have placed a bronze marker at his grave. Col. Russell's house was afterwards bought by Mr. James Noyes, whose son, Uncle John, used it as the Town and Probate Office, of which he was the Clerk, for forty-two years. At his death, the office was moved to the village of Stonington. Later this place became the property of Mr. Edmund S. Noyes, and is now occupied by his widow and son Joseph Noyes.
JOSEPH NOYES HOUSE.
Nearly opposite is a gate which leads down an old path to one of the oldest houses in town, owned by Dr. Jonathan Gray in 1720. He it was, whose services were required in the homes of our grandfathers, when blood letting and leeching were the order of the day, and the family doctor was the personal friend and confidant of the household. It is still tenantable, and is owned by one of his descendants, Mr. Henry Clay Stanton. Quite near to this house was another called "the house on the Rocks" where Blind Jesse Dewey lived, who was the beneficiary of all his friends and neighbors, especially during the win- ter season. At one time he was presented with a barrel of flour, by a benevolent gentleman, Mr. Charles Phelps, and it was placed on a long table in his small room, where removing the head of the barrel, as it lay on its side, about one third of the flour came pushing out in great white drifts, which nearly covered the table where Mother Dewey was mixing her biscuit ready for the Tin Baker which stood before the fire;
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having a caller, she told him what one of her neighbors had said to her, that. Mr. Phelps had given it only for the name, when Uncle Jesse spoke up ,saying, "I don't care if he did, it tastes just as good."
A little northeast of Stoney Brook, where it crosses the road, stands the Thomas Palmer house, which was built in 1720, by Rev. Ebenezer Rossiter, who had been given some eight or ten acres of land by Mr. Samuel Chesebrough, upon which he erected this house which is now standing, well protected by trees before the door and a fine avenue of rock maples, leading up to the mansion which is a large two-story house with the sloping roof at the rear; few of this style of houses are now left standing about here. It is well preserved, and as you stand upon the broad stone step before the front door, your eye rests upon
DR. JONATHAN GRAY HOUSE.
the iron knocker, which has sent so many expectant thrills through the occupants of this house in the past one hundred and seventy years. The iron door handle is set in a spade shape of iron above and below, and lifting the latch will disclose to view a hall and fine old winding staircase, which carries you by several turns to the third story. The wainscoting in the west room, the summer beams and deep cornice bear evidence of the grandeur of this old house in days gone by. Mr. Ros- siter, not being able to pay for this house, sold it back to Mr. Chese- brough, who in turn sold it to Mr. Thomas Palmer, whose son after- wards owned it, and it is still in the Palmer name. After Mr. Rossiter left here, he bought land of Mr. John Dean, about a quarter of a mile west of the church, and built another house, which he occupied, and after a time he erected a small schoolhouse nearby, where he fitted students for college. He died here in 1762. Later on, in this same house, occurred a double wedding, when Nancy and Lois, only daugh- ters of the young widow of Ethan Denison, married Nathan Noyes and
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Joseph Griswold one beautiful Sunday morning, and began their wed- ded life, one in Stonington and the other in Coleraine, Mass. These four lived many happy years, and with their children and grand- children celebrated their golden wedding, but not being able physically to join each other on that day, messages of affection and congratula- tion were exchanged by electricity. This house from which they were married was taken down about 1850, and another stands on its site, long owned and occupied by Calvin Sutton and Charles P. Noyes.
Rev. Ebenezer Rossiter's daughter, Hannah, married Mr. John Hil- liard, who owned the land and also a house a short distance south of the church where Mr. Frank Noyes resided for a time, and where now his son, Mr. Frank Noyes, makes his summer home. Mr. and Mrs.
THOMAS PALMER HOUSE.
Hilliard had no children, and after his wife's death he married Ann Potter, who survived him and married, second, Lieut. Daniel Collins, the keeper of the Tavern near here for a long time. This Mr. Hilliard gave the land for the Road Cemetery, which has recently been beauti- fied by the erection of a family mausoleum for Mr. Gilbert Collins, great grandson of this Lieut. Daniel Collins.
Another of Mr. Rossiter's daughters, Mary, married Thomas Palmer, and began housekeeping a short distance below her sister, Hannah, in a house built long before the Revolution by himself, where he carried his bride, who only lived a few short years. This wood-colored house with its old stone chimney, showing on the outside the entire length, as you come up the hill from the west, is still standing in a fair state of pres- ervation and owned by the Palmer family. It is now known as Cato's house, having been occupied by one of Mr. Palmer's slaves, who was also a negro soldier of the Revolutionary war. He and his wife Flora occupied this house till their death. The story is told of Cato that
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when he was married, Rev. Mr. Hart was called in to perform the ceremony, and after its conclusion, and refreshments had been served, Cato said to him, "Mr. Hart, I want to see you round behind this door a minute ?" Following him, Mr. Hart said, "What do you want, Cato?" "Why I want to know how much you are going to ax me for this job?" "Oh!" said Mr. Hart, "I guess about a dollar." "Cheap enough, Marsa Hart," Cato replied, "I'll give you all my custom."
On the other side of the road is the Mint house, fast going to ruin. Here was where Rose lived alone with her little daughter. She was a negro woman for whom the church cared, and here her friends for miles around met at stated times and had a quilting for her benefit. These were merry occasions, and an outdoor picnic supper was served
CATO'S HOUSE.
under the trees, as the house was far too small to even admit the quilt- ing frames, having only one small room above and below. It was sup- posed to have been built by Mr. Noyes Palmer some time in the latter part of 1700-as Mint, or Mintus, Palmer was one of his slaves.
Within a short distance south of here, were several old houses. The first at the right was where Robert Milley lived, who was a good musician and played the violin for the country dances. During the summer season he was a vendor of wild fruits and berries. At the left was the old house, which Benjamin Searle owned and sold to Katherine Angier (tailoress) in 1743, and she sold it later to Symonds Whipple, while below here a few rods, the old, low, gambrel roof Hancox house stood close to the road.
A short distance to the north, where the road curves abruptly from the west, stands the Edward Hallam house built by the great-great- grandson of the first John Hallam, in the early part of 1700 as a half, one story, low house, but it has been added to and improved, making it
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now seem comparatively modern. Here, later, Mr. James Norman, an Englishman, lived, and he was the first one to play the "bass-viol" in the Road Meeting-house. This place afterwards belonged to many dif- ferent people, and is now owned by Mr. Dudley Brown.
Just a little west of the church stands the Woodbridge house, a low story-and-a-half edifice, with the front roof built gambrel and slanting in the rear, with little dormer windows which have been built in recent- ly. The house is snugly ensconced amid surrounding trees in an old style garden, where still abound the old-fashioned flowers so dear to the heart of every child of nature. As it stands upon a corner, in four directions can be seen the passers-by, and many a merry tale is told of
DUDLEY BROWN HOUSE.
the various families who have lived under this old rooftree. This house was built by Mr. Joseph Page, early in 1700. He was born in Water- town, Mass., in 1679, and came to Stonington and married the daughter of Capt. Joseph Saxton, who lived west of Anguilla Brook nearly oppo- site the new quarry, which was opened a few years ago. The site of this house is still found by an old double-faced wall on the south side of the road. Capt. Saxton kept an Ordinary or Tavern here, which was considered by travellers better than any other for miles along the road.
In 1776, Mr. William Woodbridge came to live at the Page house. He was son of Dr. Dudley Woodbridge, and was considered a great man of his day. He married Zerviah Williams, and having no children of his own he left by will in 1825 a thousand dollars to the Road Church and society, if they would raise another thousand, which they did. His wife's will was made famous by being written by the noted Aaron Burr. After Mr. Woodbridge's death this place became the property of Mr. Thomas Noyes, and is now owned by Mr. James A. Lord.
Opposite the Woodbridge place, is a deep cavity, which marks the
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spot of an old, old house once occupied by Mr. Eleazer Wheeler and family, and just across and east of this, in the Society lot, a house for- merly stood, where now can be seen a large clump of lilacs, some stones and a slight depression in the earth. Here Mr. Francis Noyes was born, when his parents lived in this house. It being situated so near the church, it proved very convenient when the spring house- cleaning time came, and the church received its share of attention; water was heated here, and all needful utensils were found to carry on this work. Not far from here, but a little east of Mr. Lord's house, was at one time a large building, which was used as a store house, but it has been taken down within the last century and carried to Stoning- ton Borough.
Now Journeying up the road we turn at the corner and pass under
WOODBRIDGE HOUSE.
an arch of drooping elm trees, past the old place of Rev. Mr. Rossiter's, where now another house stands, and on until we come to the Dea. Jo. Denison house, standing upon a little eminence. It is a broad, double house, with the chimney in the middle, but no rooms in the rear, except in the three ells. This house was built in 1730, during the life of Mr. Denison's first wife, who was instrumental in decorating the large west keeping-room with the beautiful entablature which is found there now; also the panel work over the fire-place and the deep cupboards with their glass doors can be seen. Mrs. Denison was Mrs. Content (Hew- itt) Russell, widow of the first ordained minister of North Stonington. This house is peculiar in many respects, having been added to and formerly used by two families. The dark passageways and six gar- rets, full of old time clothing, letters, and all things dear to the heart of childhood, makes it an ideal playroom, and so it has been used by the little children who for years have been in the family. Two of the
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four outside doors open directly into the garden, where are found little beds of old-fashioned flowers, phlox, nasturtiums, pansies, poppies, tulips, climbing roses and trailing vines, once tended by loving hands. The old porch at the back of the house draped with trailing grape vines remains the same; the bench upon which to dry the milk pans; the gnarled and knotted dry branch firmly imbedded in the ground, where the milk pails were hung to dry and air; the baskets and pails which in the autumn were heaped with fruit; the grindstone and little three- legged stool; the half slant door put in to keep the babies from falling out on the hard stone steps, all make the picture complete. On the
THE MOSS HOMESTEAD.
north side in the upper story is the arched window with small panes of glass, almost an oricl window, set between two portions of the house, which project upon either side. All these remain to the present day to testify of other lives and former happy days. Mr. Zebbe Chese- brough and family lived here when he was chorister at the Road Church. Afterwards Dea. Denison's grandson, Amos, lived here with his family, and his daughter, Caroline, married Mr. William C. Moss. This family was here for years, and still own it, though many of them are now residents of Western States.
Just north, on a little hill, stands a large, double white house, with cherry trees before the door, which was built by Dea. Jo. Denison's son, Peleg, in 1775. He married Dr. Jonathan Gray's daughter, Mary. It was afterwards owned by Mr. Sylvester Wallworth, and later on by Mr. George W. Noyes, who rented it for years to Mr. Uriah Harvey,
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and it is now owned by that family.
A little further up the hill, apart from the road, stands the ancient Gallup house, built about 1700 by Symonds Whipple's son, William, who married Mary Gallup. Mr. Symonds himself lived a little north of the David Stanton house. The Whipples came from Ipswich, Mass., and Symonds' father was Cyprian, who married Dorothy Symonds, daughter of Samuel, who at one time was Deputy Governor to the Col- ony. This two story half house is quaint in style with the north side of the roof sloping to the very windows of the first floor. The little leanto was attached, and until very recently it has preserved its origin- al appearance in all respects. Amos Gallup built the blacksmith shop, which used to stand just below the hill at the west, and the story has been handed down to the present generation, of the great snow storm on Dec. 25th, 1811, when not being able to get a horse to the shop, be-
-
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PELEG DENISON HOUSE.
cause of the banks and huge drifts of snow, he was taken into the kitchen, and his shoes were fitted by the great fire on the hearth.
The Gallups were noted as good story tellers and very fond of a joke; the latter generation who occupied this house are remembered yet; two brothers and two sisters lived here in harmony for nearly a century; one sat in darkness for many years, but with true spiritual vision she lived her life in the light of God. When her young friends came to see her which they always delighted to do, she would rise care- fully from her chair, where she always sat near her bureau, and reach- ing up her beautiful hand, would place it tenderly, first upon their shoulder, and then up to the crown of their head, exclaiming, "Why, how much you have grown!" Her father was great grandson of Capt. John Gallup, and her mother was Wealthian Dean, who lived at the Dean Mills. This family has gone, and only memories are left
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