Connecticut Real Estate History

03/23/2025

Yale High Street Bridge, New Haven, Connecticut:

This stunning structure over High Street stands as a testament to architectural ingenuity at Yale University. Designed by architect Egerton Swartwout in 1926, and completed in 1928, the walkway was constructed to connect the Gallery of Fine Arts (now known as the Old Yale Art Gallery) and Street Hall. High Street Bridge was envisioned as a symbolic and functional link between the artistic and academic spheres of the university.

Swartwout, a prominent architect known for his work on institutional buildings, crafted the Gothic Revival bridge with intricate stonework and pointed arches, echoing the medieval influences of Yale’s design ethos at the time. Spanning High Street, the structure not only served a practical purpose but also contributed to the campus’s distinctive aesthetic.

The bridge’s construction coincided with a period of expansion for Yale, as the university enhanced facilities in the pre-Depression era. Today, Yale High Street Bridge is celebrated not only for its architectural beauty but also as a historic emblem of the university’s commitment to art, education, and enduring design.

New Haven was one of the first planned cities in the United States, with streets laid out in a grid pattern, including High Street, which was part of the "Nine Square Plan" in the 1630s. Almost four centuries later, Yale University plans to preserve High Street in a transformative way. In a deal with the City of New Haven, Yale plans to make High Street, between Chapel Street and Elm Street, a pedestrian and cyclist-only plaza.

“The goal is to convert this section of High Street into a vibrant public walkway and a beautiful space that residents, students, and visitors alike can enjoy and that will span the test of time as a right-of-way for people, not cars,” added city Economic Development Administrator Michael Piscitelli. (Source: New Haven Independent)

02/10/2025

Bill Miller's Castle, Branford, Connecticut:

Chances are that you've been to a wedding here. Originally built as a horse barn in the 1880s, the property then served as a family restaurant called Holly's Barn. Bill Miller transformed the barn into a dance and gymnastics studio in 1965, accommodating up to 1,200 students. Miller was a performer, teacher, designer, and entrepreneur.

He went into full "castle mode" in 1990 by renovating the premises into a banquet hall. Miller's daughters, Lisa and Cheri, took over the business, and it has since become a popular event venue. The 250-guest capacity castle is used for weddings, corporate events, proms, bar mitzvahs and fashion shows.

Bill Miller's Castle exhibits a unique blend of architectural styles, primarily characterized by rustic, cottage and medieval-inspired elements. It has natural stonework, stained glass windows, cathedral ceilings, five fireplaces, a dance floor and crystal chandeliers. There's also a 19th century bell within a wood-shingled structure outside that was salvaged from an Ansonia foundry by none other than Bill Miller.

01/28/2025

America's Fallen Cities: Hartford

Going to be focusing on other topics for the next few weeks now that we have a much larger community here and there's so much to talk about. But don't worry,...

01/22/2025

01/19/2025

Caleb Dudley III House, Guilford, Connecticut:

The date 1764 is assigned to this saltbox Colonial because Caleb Dudley III, who is known to have built the home, was married that year. About 70 years later a fire damaged the front door and was replaced by the present Greek Revival doorway, built by George Bushnell, master builder to the Dudley family of farmers on Clapboard Hill. Many features have been added and subtracted since then. In 1894, a pantry and sinkroom were removed from the rear and turned into a chicken coop, while a 1 1/2 story ell was added for a kitchen.

In 1958, the ell was removed and replaced by an additional bathroom. The last surviving handmade clapboards were taken off around this time to make way for a screened porch. The house was then painted red, which was thought to be its original color. The farmland property used to be home to Maple Shade Dairy, which later moved to Boston Post Road, becoming a bygone staple of Guilford. The Connecticut Historical Commission's inventory of 1972 stated that the home had a roof with a "respectable sag," but now the roof appears to be in good condition.



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01/14/2025

"...Connecticut’s first motor-car set forth in the streets of Hartford in April 1896." State Library

David Corrigan: Curator of the Museum of Connecticut History. First produced for the Connecticut Explored magazine By the mid-1890’s the bicycle craze in America was beginning to wane and Colonel […]

12/26/2024

At Old New-Gate Prison & Copper Mine, Connecticut’s past comes alive at America’s first copper mine and state prison.

12/21/2024

“Part steamboat, part medieval fortress, part cuckoo clock” were the words used to describe the Mark Twain House by biographer Justin Kaplan.

12/12/2024

Elmwood of Windsor, CT - The homestead of former United States Supreme Court Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth as featured in "Old Houses of Connecticut" (1923):

"On March 1, 1665, Josiah Ellsworth, the ancestor of all the Ellsworths in this country, bought the land from Mrs. Joanna Davison for a certain sum of money and 'forty-five pounds of wheat, pease, and Indian corn and poark at prices currant,' and in the hands of the Ellsworth family it remained until, on July 30, 1903, it was transferred, as a gift from one hundred and sixteen descendants of Oliver Ellsworth, to the Connecticut Society of the Daughters of the American."

The house was built in 1740 from timber of elm trees.

Visit the Oliver Ellsworth Homestead EMA at https://ellsworthhomesteaddar.org/ and visit the house museum in person!

12/10/2024

50 of 169 CT Town Signs -
Ivoryton, Connecticut

Sent by fellow Realtor .

11/24/2024

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