New Canaan Now & Then: Mansion House

The current owners are not spooked by the ghost that occupies their home at 453 Carter Street. The cast of characters that lived in this residence seems as though they would be excellent housemates. The house, known as the Mansion House or the “Benedict-Eels-Thatcher House,” is reputedly the oldest house in New Canaan. It was built in 1724 on land owned by the Carter family who sold it to Deacon John Benedick Jr, who gifted it to his son, John Benedick, soon after his wedding to Dinah Bouton of Norwalk. At the time Carter Street was known as Clapboard Hills.

New Canaan Now & Then: The Congregational Church

The history of New Canaan is tightly entwined with the history of the Congregational Church. By 1731 enough members in the New Canaan area were tired of traveling to either Norwalk or Stamford to attend services on Sunday, and they petitioned the colonial government to form their own parish in the area. Their request was approved and the Society of Canaan Parish was established, which covered just about the same area that New Canaan does today. The entire membership of the church was only twenty-seven people. With the church established, it began to collect taxes from both members and nonmembers living in the parish.

New Canaan Now & Then: The Playhouse

In 1922, when the New Canaan Playhouse was built, current day Elm Street (then Railroad Avenue) was vacant land, except for one resident on the south side.  A group of local men, The Village Improvement Company, recognized the need for a playhouse.  Their proposal included the opportunity for each and every resident to become a stockholder. 

The cupolaed building was designed by local resident, Calvin E. Kiessling. Kiessling’s design, the red brick and white trim, suggesting a  modified colonial structure, established the style for the future buildings that eventually filled in both sides of Elm Street. The building had a frontage of 58 feet on Railroad Avenue (Elm) and extended back 100 feet with flanking passageways on each side used in conjunction with the fourteen exits in addition to the exits off the main lobby. The original plans also called for two stores at street level. The auditorium itself was originally 56 feet wide and 76 feet deep, with a seating capacity of 400.

New Canaan Now & Then: Grace House in the Field

The New Canaan Country School campus has a long history of serving the needs of children and the majestic main campus building, Grace House in the Fields, has been an integral part of this legacy. Grace House was completed in April 1899. The columned portico was fronted by a dirt driveway lined with sugar maples. If you happen to drive up Frogtown Road, be sure to take notice of the size of these trees today. 

The NCCS acquired the property from the Grace Episcopal Church of New York in May 1936 as a new campus, having outgrown its prior location on Seminary Street. At the time of the acquisition, the St.

New Canaan Now & Then: The Thrift Shop

The next time you are waiting at the light on Locust Avenue take a minute to consider the interesting history of the building that currently houses the New Canaan Thrift Shop. This clapboard Greek revival home was built in 1840 by Joseph Scofield. Scofield purchased the property, “75 feet from the highway,” from Seymour Comstock for $150. Scofield, a prohibitionist, leased the two-story house to the Young Men’s Total Abstinence Society (later known as the Friendship Division of the Sons of Temperance). Unfortunately, Scofield had limited success with prohibition.  The upper floor of 2 Locust Avenue was used as a dance floor and boasted a vaulted ceiling that was painted to resemble the night sky.