As for the George Washington claim… everyone has a George Washington claim. The ballroom still exists, though I have not seen it. It is said that President George Washington danced his last minuet in Litchfield in that ballroom. Parties were frequently held in the ballroom on the second floor. Wolcott’s wife, Elizabeth Stoughton Wolcott, was known for being a gracious hostess and the fame of her parties reached as far as Washington, D.C. was born in 1760 and went on to serve in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and later become the 2nd United States Secretary of the Treasury from 1795-1800, and the 24th Governor of Connecticut from 1817-1827. acquired the house in 1814 and enlarged it considerably in 1817. The house was built by Elijah Wadsworth in 1799 and sold to Frederick Wolcott in 1800. Now it gets confusing… stick with me here. It served the town well for 60 years but a larger space was needed. Vanderpoel’s grandmother, Julia Tallmadge Noyes, was completed and dedicated and opened in 1902. In July of 1901, the Noyes Memorial Building, named in honor of Mr.
#Wolcott ilibrary free
In 1901 the two associations joined forces to build a new building nearby that would serve as the library and the Litchfield Historical Society, and the Library would be “as free as the air to the people of Litchfield.” It was built by a guy named John Arent Vanderpoel. The two associations amicably shared their collections however, the general public was effectively excluded as payment of dues was required to join either library. In 1870, another group formed the Litchfield Circulating Library Association in the same red brick building. We’ll get to the Wolcott family in a minute. The founders named the new facility the Wolcott Library Association in recognition of Oliver Wolcott’s grandson, Julius Huntington Wolcott, an early patron. The Library’s first home was the Seymour Building, a square red brick structure on South Street. The library has been in existence in some form and at some site since 1862.
The library has some history too – and it can be confusing. Certainly an inspiration for me to create my own little list of what I call The Connecticut Cool Library Trail. And I love all that – I do!īut this page is about a very different building on South Street, smack dab in the middle of all those historic homes: The Oliver Wolcott Library. The row of historic homes on South Street just south of “downtown” is stunning. Everyone is drawn to the First Congregational Church and its picture book white steeple. Sure, the main block of businesses is pure New England. I’ll admit, I’m not your typical “center of Litchfield” photographer.
0 kommentar(er)
