38 Main Street

Home of Jennifer & Michael Guman and their children

Decorated by Natural Settings by Carolyn

At the corner of Church Hill Road and Main Street, the current form of this four-bedroom Federal-style house was built circa 1791. The rear portion of the house, however, dates as far back as 1709.

Characteristic features include the symmetry typical of Georgian and Federal-style homes, fluted pilasters framing the front entryway, detailed dentil molding, and Palladian second-floor window. Denticulated molded arched windows are located at the attic gable. At one time a 19th Century balustrade encompassed the front entrance. A post-and-beam Victorian-era barn sits at the rear of the property.

Many of this home’s residents were wealthy merchants who owned some of the early commercial businesses in town. Records show the property was part of Job Sherman’s home lot as of 1714.

David Curtis, who owned and ran Newtown’s first general store across the street, built the front portion of the house. The general store that Curtis operated was moved to the rear of the property at 33 Main Street and it is currently being restored to become a bakery.

Other notable residents include Joseph Nichols, David Van Buren Baldwin (grandson of Caleb Baldwin, who operated Baldwin Tavern at 32 Main Street), Philo H. Skidmore (who owned a tavern at the corner of Currituck and Academy Lane), and F.J. Naramore.

50 Main Street

Home of Shane & George Miller

Decorated by Smart Design/Bobbie Sue Smart Interior Design

This impressive three-story, Second Empire-style residence was built in 1869 by Henry Beers Glover and remained in his family for more than 100 years. At the time of its construction, this was one of the largest and most impressive homes in Newtown, reflecting the prosperity and social position of its builder.

Mr Glover was one of the founders of Newtown Savings Bank and served as its treasurer for most of the bank’s first 15 years. He was an active supporter of Trinity Episcopal Church, serving as a member of the building committee for the new church which was completed in 1870.

Unfortunately, Henry Beers Glover did not live to enjoy his house for very long. He died in March 1870 at the age of 45, leaving a widow and two daughters. Ultimately one daughter, Mary B. Glover, and her husband William J. Beecher became sole owners.

Upon their deaths, the house passed to their daughter Florence, who married Stephen E. Budd. Florence lived in the house all of her life, dying in 1977, which is why most Newtown residents know the house as The Budd House.

The large, upper middle class, Victorian residence is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as the Glover House, after its first owner.

Among its many distinctive exterior features are the classic Corinthian columns supporting its spacious front porch and the mansard roof decorated with patterns created by the varicolored and multishaped slate roofing tiles.

51 Main Street

Home of Lucy & Chris Sullivan

Decorated by Wrenhouse-Atelier, LLC (Christine Doscher, Owner);

and Cynthia Hughes & Demaree Cooney

(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)

This house, by all indications built while George Washington was president, has been described as a typical vernacular New England dwelling of the 1790s. It occupies one of the land parcels laid out at Newtown’s founding early in the 18th Century.

Its post-and-beam construction remains visible in hand-hewn timbers, some still bearing bark, in the attic and basement. There are four working fireplaces, and the largest, in what is now the dining room, is still equipped with iron racks that were used for cooking. The smallest fireplace heated what was known as the “birthing room,” now used as a ground-floor library-office.

For many years, 51 Main Street was both home and office for Newtown’s justice of the peace, or town judge, Patrick H. McCarthy, who bought the house in 1914. He met here with townspeople seeking legal advice, and statute books lined the broad mantel above the large fireplace, his daughter, Margaret McCarthy, recalled.

Sometimes during Prohibition, the judge would reportedly let the town constable use the front porch as a lookout place to a spot “low-slung” bootleggers’ cars.

Patrick McCarthy was also a longtime school teacher and postmaster; the flag was lowered to half-staff at his death in 1941.

The property’s rustic barn, which dates to the mid- to late-19th Century but had fallen into disrepair, has been rejuvenated by the Sullivans. The former hayloft has been repurposed as a hangout location for the owners’ son during his teenage years, with a pool table, dart board, and TV. It seems the loft was similarly used a few generations earlier, as the names or initials of kids from 75 years ago are carved on an upstairs wall.

62 Main Street

Home of Betsy Kenyon

Decorated by Shakespeare’s Garden/Art of Nature

This type of center hall Colonial house was all the rage when it was built on Main Street in the late 1780s.

Like so many other Main Street houses it was extensively renovated in the post-Civil War period, giving it many Victorian appointments. including a front porch. The date of the renovation for this house has been placed at 1886 based on the date on the chimney.

The house was restored to its 18th Century appearance by 1984 by the present owner, at which time the porch was removed and 12-over-12 pane windows replaced the Victorian ones.

During the removal of the front porch, a pocket watch was found in the concrete. It had apparently fallen from a workman’s belt when the concrete was being prepared. It was dated to the 1886 period.

The pictures over the fireplace are the owner’s Scottish grandparents. These, along with many other antiques scattered throughout the house, were brought to America from Scotland in 1906.

The house has had two illustrious residents, one of national and one local fame. Between 1867 and 1869, Daniel Nash Morgan lived here while he was a partner of Levi B. Booth and ran the General Store just south of Edmond Town Hall under the name of Morgan and Booth. Morgan moved to Bridgeport in 1869, where he established his reputation in the merchandising and banking fields.

In 1893 he came to the attention of President Grover Cleveland who appointed him as the treasurer of the United States.

In 1903, Paul Smith was born in the house. He would become the editor and publisher of The Newtown Bee, as well as a founding member and the first president of Newtown Historical Society.

65-67 Main Street

Home of Ellen & George Whalen

Decorated by Hydrangea Blue/Wendy Cole

A well-executed example of a restrained but high-style Italianate residence, this charming home holds a prominent position at the head of Main Street’s west side. A marker in the cellar in a granite block dates the house to 1867.

Upon entering, many guests immediately notice the nine-foot ceilings, beautifully detailed crown moldings, grand four-over-four rounded long windows, spacious sun filled rooms and recently added back porch. The Whalens have been carefully restoring and maintaining the house to its original historic beauty.

At the back of the property is a three-story pegged barn. The property was once a small active farm owned by George Mayer. People would stop at the Mayer house for milk and from here, milk was transported to Bridgeport.

It is thought that it may have been the Mayer family who built the large wheel and trap doors that could raise and lower the cows in the barn.