Gerrish Lane
1911 photo of three actors on the lawn of the Gerrish Estate from the 1911 all-female cast version of "The Taming of the Shrew," L-R: Mrs. Davenport as Lucentio, Miss Ruth Child as Bianca, and Mrs. Edna Doughty Knox as Hortensio. Courtesy of the New Canaan Museum & Historical Society
‘New Canaan Now & Then’ is sponsored by Brown Harris Stevens Realtors Joanne Santulli, Karen Ceraso, Bettina Hegel and Schuyler Morris.
John B. Gerrish was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts and graduated from Harvard College in 1871. Gerrish became a partner at the firm of Noyes, Bauscher & Gerrish that was the “selling agent” for the Amoskeag Mills Cotton Manufacturer. He lived in Brooklyn Heights and spent his first summer in New Canaan in 1889. On October 6, 1891, he purchased ten acres of land in New Canaan from Joseph F. Silliman. Over the next few years, Gerrish added to his property and built an estate that was described as “one of the largest and best furnished summer residences” in New Canaan.
The Gerrish Estate was an integral part of summer life in New Canaan. It was used as a location for plays, including the “Taming of the Shrew” in 1911, which featured an all-female cast of local women. Mr. Gerrish also allowed the use of his lawn for the county fair in September 1910 and the proceeds ($1100) were donated to the Library Fund. The Boy Scout Annual Track meet was held on the lawn of the Gerrish Estate in July 1923. Gerrish was also one of the original subscribers that offered financial support for the New Canaan Golf Club, along with his close friend, Dr. Lambert (the golf club was incorporated on May 8, 1899).
The Gerrish estate burned to the ground on May 6, 1907. It was rumored that the fire had been deliberately set, but the local newspaper—the Messenger—reported that these rumors were unfounded. The fire was reported at 11 p.m., but there was a delay at the telephone exchange in reaching the engine house and then further delays getting a team of horses hitched to the fire engine. The delay lasted twenty minutes and by the time the home was reached the fire raged out of control. The large house burned to the ground in two hours. 49 Gerrish Lane is all that remains of the original estate. Our local historian, Mary Louise King, reminisced about “Uncle Gerrish’s house” and reported that his original home was located where the first house past the brook now sits, which is currently 112 Gerrish Lane. She remembered a spring called the “fairy pool” where neighborhood children would make shingle boats and float them down past St. John’s Place to Mead Park.
John Gerrish died on December 3, 1925 at the age of 76 having never married. After his death, the property passed to his nephews, who sold fifteen and ½ acres to John R. Dunlap Jr. on May 28, 1928. Dunlap immediately sold it to the Fairfield Holding Company, in which he had an interest. The company laid out building lots along the proposed new road called Gerrish Lane, which was the former driveway to Gerrish’s caretaker cottage. As early as 1934, references to “Gerrish Lane” appear in the Advertiser and many of the reports indicate news of purchasing parcels of land and waiting for homes to be completed.
One of Mr. Gerrish’s nephews, Lawrence P. Frothingham helped to found the Boy Scouts in New Canaan with Marshal Stearns and Raymond Striet. Frothingham was a talented athlete and the tennis champion at the Country Club. He was elected to the first Park Board and was instrumental in creating the dam at Mead Memorial Park. He was also the founder of the Harvard Club of New Canaan, where both his son and grandson were members. Unfortunately, his grandson, Edward P. Frothingham (“Ned”) was killed in a car accident in September 1955 in Stuart, Florida with fellow New Canaanite David Lapham. At the time of his death, he was a senior at Harvard College
The notable residents of Gerrish Lane included the artist Walter D. Richards, whose residence was 112 Gerrish Lane. The New Canaan Museum & Historical Society houses a vast collection of Richards’ work which ranges from New Canaan scenes to Richards’ pet cats. One of Richards’ pieces – depicting Center School principal Richard A. Wilkinson grasping the hand of Henry Richards (the artist’s son) at Ebbets Field – appeared in Sports Illustrated. Another former resident (of 49 Gerrish Lane) was the well known screen print artist Eric S. Holch, who currently has a gallery on Nantucket. Mr. Holch lived there from 1978-1996 and regularly contributed his art to auctions to support neighboring New Canaan Nature Center.