Sun, Books, Gardens And Lecture All Combined For Significant Historical Society Weekend

By Shannon Hicks

As last weekend approached, planners for the 11th Annual Newtown Historical Society Historic Homes & Gardens Tour — particularly the event’s coordinator, Jo-Ann Scebold — must have been getting nervous. Humidity and steamy sun in the days prior to Saturday’s self-guided tour seemed only to be punctuated by thunderstorms and downpours. As the July 9 event approached, most of the meteorologists in the state all seemed to be saying the same thing: rain for Saturday.

When Saturday instead dawned sunny and dry, if not a little hot, Ms Scebold and everyone involved in the tour must have breathed a sigh of relief. Instead of worrying about keeping homes free of mud and ticket-holders trying to maneuver their way over rain-slicked grasses as they perused some of the town’s prettiest gardens, there was a distinct aura of joy as the opening hour of the tour approached.

This week Ms Scebold called the event “a record-breaking success” and applauded the “outpouring of community spirit” she saw on Saturday.

Dozens of docents were recruited to greet visitors, provide information, and answer questions at each stop of the tour.

The self-guided tour offered ticket-holders access to four private homes and gardens — the two-story farmhouse, antique barn, and gardens of Peggy Jepsen Gross; the pre-Revolutionary War home and gardens of Marilyn and Tucker Frey; the property owned by Richard and Nora Murphy, which includes a 1½-story circa 1767 colonial and its gardens; and the storybook pre-Revolutionary War cottage and the 14 acres surrounding it owned by Deb and Mike Osborne.

Members of Newtown’s garden clubs added their talent to the already beautiful homes on the tour. The Garden Club of Newtown and Town & Country Garden Club of Newtown each had members creating floral arrangements to complement the homes.

Three private gardens were also open for visits. The gardens were on the property of master gardener Sydney Eddison, master gardener Maureen McLachlan, and Betsy Kenyon.

Also on the tour was The Pleasance, the public garden at 1 Main Street that was created by The Newtown Bee, under the supervision of owner and publisher R. Scudder Smith.

An additional bonus on Saturday was the appearance of longtime resident and author Mary Mitchell, who spent a few hours at the antique barn of George and Shane Miller signing copies of the book Touring Newtown’s Past: The Settlement and Architecture of an Old Connecticut Town. Four of the properties on the tour happened to be featured in that book.

That book, which Mrs Mitchell co-authored with her dear friend, the late Al Goodrich, has gone into a second printing. All proceeds from the sale of Mrs Mitchell and Mr Goodrich’s book have always and will continue to benefit the historical society.

Also at the Millers’ barn were copies of Eleanor Mayer’s History of Cherry Grove Farm, a brand-new book by Newtown resident Andrea Zimmermann. As with Mrs Mitchell’s book, all proceeds from the sale of Ms Zimmermann’s book will directly benefit Newtown Historical Society. (Ms Zimmerman will have reading and book signing events in the future; program dates are being worked on.)

Preceding the tour, on Friday night all ticket-holders and property owners were invited to a champagne reception and lecture at C.H. Booth Library. Using the rapid-fire delivery that has become his trademark when lecturing, Town Historian Dan Cruson gave an informative and entertaining lecture that looked at many Victorian-era homes in Newtown.

“I have long maintained that Newtown’s Main Street is a textbook of American architecture,” Mr Cruson said. While his lecture lasted for just about an hour, it felt like it went much quicker thanks to color slides and humor that Mr Cruson had to accompany his research.

“You can walk along Main Street and even part of South Main Street and see a visual history of architecture, from the post and beam of the Mathew Curtiss House [at 44 Main Street] to the shingle-style Smith-Scudder House [at 15-17 Main],” Mr Cruson said.

Most of the images used in the lecture were recent photographs of the homes being discussed, including The Daniel Baldwin House at the corner of Main Street and Church Hill Road (whose style, said Mr Cruson, “reflects the wealth of the builder … [and has a] beautiful symmetrical style”)

Other images, such as one of The Belden House at 40 Main Street, offered original views of the homes in question. Mr Cruson called that house “a good example of understated Greek Revival style.”

The Whalen home, at 65 Main Street, is “a superb example of high Italianate style.” The house was built by Charles Glover, who was “a scion of the Glover family here in Newtown [who was] known for these Italianate style homes.”

The wood framed 2½-story home features nine-foot ceilings, four-over-four rounded windows and spacious sun-filled rooms. Italianate architecture is known for asymmetrical elements, which on the Whalen home includes brackets, an off-center front door, and a wing on only one side of the house.

One of Mr Cruson’s favorite features is an asymmetrical bow-front window on the front of the house which, he said, “allows you to feel as if you are almost sitting in nature when you’re in it.”

The house, Mr Cruson pointed out, has only had three previous owners since its construction in 1867.

At 3 Church Hill Road is another example of Italianate architecture, one which is “not quite as fancy,” but Glover certainly gave the dwelling its distinctive style.

“Glover couldn’t fully give up the symmetry, thought,” Mr Cruson said, pointing to a pair of porticos, one on each side of the landmark yellow house.

Also built by Glover were the homes at Glover Avenue and Main Street (“this one is just a little plainer than 3 Church Hill, and the symmetry has again crept back in”), the building at 22 Main Street that was until recently the home of Mayer Real Estate (“very simple, though plainer,” said Mr Cruson) and house at 65 Main Street known by many as The Fairchild House (also the former home of published poet Polly Brody), which Mr Cruson called “a stripped-down model, with very basic ornamentation.”

“The Fairchild brothers, the original owners, did not want a lot of decoration,” said Mr Cruson, who said he has not yet fully determined that 65 Main Street was in fact built by Charles Glover. “But I have my suspicions,” he added.

The Budd House at 50 Main Street — which was part of last weekend’s homes and gardens tour — is “a Second Empire House, and truly one of the best I have seen in Connecticut,” praised Mr Cruson. “I have not yet found one to beat the beauty of that house.”

It had previously been believed that the circa 1869 house was built by Henry Beers Glover and Henry Beers.

While the house has been owned by members of the Glover family in the past, it was built, said Mr Cruson, by Otis Marshall (born 1831 in East Lyme). Marshall apparently worked for Charles Glover before going off on his own, and built the house

When one of the audience members queried Mr Cruson about this, he smiled and gently chided her, saying, “Family relations are not always good. They must have had their reason.”

 The home’s mansard roof is its hallmark, as is its rigid symmetry. Mr Cruson believes the porch may be original, and the house itself, which was home to Newtown Savings Bank for the first few years of the bank’s existence, “has a history that is intricately tied to Newtown.”

Also featured during Mr Cruson’s program were The Arthur Nettleton Treat House, “a delightfully eccentric house” at 28 Main Street; the large Queen Anne style house opposite The Inn at Newtown, “a fascinating building in that they tucked in so many different designs,” said Mr Cruson, “every time you go by, you can see something different”; and the 1888 Victorian at the corner of Sugar Street and Juniper Road.

“What can I say?” challenged Mr Cruson. “This one speaks for itself. The masterpiece [at 50 Main Street, now The Budd House] was repeated with this house the following year. It looks almost chaotic and yet it fits together and it works!”

The historic segment of Mr Cruson’s lecture concluded with a look at The Smith-Scudder House, “a true duplex, with symmetry,” he said. “Technically it’s not a Victorian house, but it carries some of the same elements.”

After showing the beauty of some of Newtown’s most historic homes, Mr Cruson offered closing slides of modern homes as a stark contrast.

Proceeds from the tour’s tickets — which included admission to Friday’s lecture by Mr Cruson — benefit Newtown Historical Society, the upkeep of Matthew Curtiss House (the society’s headquarters), and the society’s educational programs.