Good Hill Farm Preserve - Pond's Farm (478 Good Hill Road (Rte 317), Woodbury (Western Uplands))

Designations

Historic Significance

Architectural description:

There are seven structures of note.

Structure #1 is a 1-½ story, eave-entry barn with a gambrel roof and a shed roof addition to the north. The main façade appears to face north and the ridgeline runs east-west, parallel to Good Hill Road, which lies to the south. Along the main façade from east to west is a stable window, what appears to be a pair of large, hinged doors, two stable windows on the shed-roof addition, and a gablet dormer. On the bottom-story of the west gable-end is a pair of pass-through French doors and two 6/1 double-hung sash windows with trim. On the upper-story is a twined 6/1 double-hung sash window with trim. Along the south eave-side there is a large Chicago window with trim, three triple windows with six panes and trim, and a gablet dormer with a 6/1 double-hung sash window. On the east gable-end are two pass-through doors with large glass lights on the upper-story. The walls appear to be covered with painted wood shingles (perhaps asbestos). The roof is covered in asphalt shingles, and there is a metal chimney just north of the ridgeline.

Structure # 2 is to the north of structure #1. It is a 1-½ story, eave-entry barn with a gambrel roof. The main façade appears to face south, and the ridgeline runs east-west, parallel to Good Hill Road which lies to the south. From west to east along the main façade is a large sliding-door mounted on an external track. This door is constructed of vertical wood boards. This is followed by a pass-through door and three pairs of hinged stable-doors. Along the west gable-end there are eight six-pane stable windows. The barn appears to be constructed of painted vertical-board siding, and a girt-line siding divide is visible on both gable-ends. The roof appears to be covered with asphalt shingles.

Structure #3 is to the west of structure #2. This is a 1-½ story, gable-entry barn with a gambrel-roof and a gambrel-roof projection at the northeastern corner of the east eave-side, forming an L-shape plan. The ridge-line of the main barn runs north-south, perpendicular to Good Hill Road while that of the intersecting addition runs east-west parallel to the road. The main façade faces south. There are two large sliding-doors mounted on an external track that spans the entire façade. These doors are constructed of vertical boards with trim. In between the sliding doors appears to be a hinged pass-through door. Above this door is a large hay-door mounted on an internal track. The hay-door is flanked by two twined windows with six-panes and trim. A triangular hay hood projects from the apex of the gable. On the south-eave side of the projecting wing there appears to be two large stable-doors. Along the west eave-end of the main wing are ten series of stable windows with trim spanning the entire length of the side. From south to north, the first five series consist of four, six-pane windows. The sixth series is a triple window with six-panes. The remaining four series have four, six-pane windows, and there is a gablet dormer containing a hay door. There are six stable windows on the north eave-end of the projecting wing. On the east gable-end of the projecting eave there appears to be two stable windows with trim and a large hay door. On the east eave-side of the main structure are seven series of stable windows and a gablet dormer hay door. The barn is covered in painted clapboard siding. There is an unpainted standing-seam metal roof, and three louvered cupolas with hipped roofs covered with asphalt shingles.

Structure #4 is to the north of Structure #3. This is a concrete-stave silo with a domed roof.

Structure #5 is to the east of structure #3. This is a 1-½ story, eave-entry structure with 3-bays and a gable roof. Its ridgeline runs east-west, parallel to Good Hill Road. The main façade faces south and there appears to be three doors.

Structure #6 is to the west of structure #3. This is a 1-½ story, gable-entry structure. Its main façade faces south, and its ridgeline runs north-south, perpendicular to the road. Principal entry is provided by a hinged, pass-through Good Hill Road. To its east is a 4/4 sash window with trim. On the west eave-side are two 4/4 sash windows with trim. The walls appear to be painted masonry, and the triangular area below the gable on the main façade is covered with painted clapboards. The roof is covered with asphalt shingles.

Structure #7 is to the west of structure #6. This is a 1-½ story, gable-entry structure with a shed-roof addition to the west. The main façade faces south, and the ridgeline runs perpendicular to Good Hill Road. Principal entry is provided by a hinged pass-through door constructed of vertical wood boards with a single light. Along the east-eave side is a window. The exterior walls of the main structure are covered with what appear to be wood shingles. The shed-roof addition appears to be covered in vertical board siding. The roof is covered with asphalt shingles.

Historical significance:

By the early 20th century agricultural engineers developed a new approach to dairy barn design: the ground-level stable barn, to reduce the spread of tuberculosis bacteria by improving ventilation, lighting, and reducing the airborne dust of manure. A concrete slab typically serves as the floor for the cow stables. Many farmers converted manure basements in older barns into ground-level stables with concrete floors. Some older barns were jacked up and set on new first stories to allow sufficient headroom. With the stables occupying the entire first story, the space above serves a a hayloft. By the 1920s most ground-level stable barns were being constructed with lightweight balloon frames using two-by-fours or two-by-sixes for most of the timbers. Novelty or tongue-and-groove beveled siding is common on the walls, although asbestos cement shingles also were a popular sheathing. Some barns have concrete for the first-story walls, either poured in place or built up out of blocks. The gambrel roof design was universally accepted as it enclosed a much greater volume than a gable roof did, and its shape could be formed with trusses. Also see entry for Pole Barn.

In a gambrel roofed barn of the mid-20th century, a hay fork typically ran along a track beneath the ridge. Large loads of loose hay could be lifted from hay wagons [through an upper level gable-end door]. On some barns this hay track continues outside the gable wall beneath a triangular extension of the roof. Powered conveyor lifts also could carry baled hay into the loft through the hay door.

Before the 1880s, cheese and butter making were usually done on the farm. The milk room or dairy room was often located in an ell between the kitchen and the woodshed. Some farms had separate milk rooms and dairy rooms. In the milk room, the fresh milk was poured into shallow pans placed on shelves or racks. After the cream rose to the surface, it was skimmed off the milk and then churned to make butter. Cooperative creameries were being established throughout New England in the 1880s. Usually located next to the railroad line in villages, these creameries processed the milk of dozens of farmers, who shipped the liquid from the farm to the creamery by wagon in metal cans. Single-story milk houses are typically attached to [20th-century] ground-level stable barns for preparation of the milk to be sent to the creamery. Designed to comply with state and local ordinances intended to minimize the potential for milk contamination, many are now fitted with large, electrically cooled stainless steel bulk storage tanks.

Historical background:

The farm is currently owned by Roxbury Land Trust Inc., a land trust established in 1970 to preserve the Town of Roxbury’s historic and natural resources. In 2000, Roxbury Land Trust launched the Campaign to Save Our Farms, an effort to preserve Roxbury’s agricultural heritage and rural vistas from pending development. With the help of private and public donations and a sizable grant from the State of Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection Open Lands and Watershed Acquisition Fund, the Roxbury Land Trust succeeded in acquiring over 800 acres of farmland, including Good Hill Farm, a historic farmstead owned and operated by the Pond family and located on 476 acres between the border of Roxbury and Woodbury CT. The farm was purchased in stages, the 236 acres in Roxbury being acquired on September 9, 2001, and the remaining 221 acres in Woodbury acquired on September 12, 2002. Today, the Ponds continue to operate the farm under the direction of Roxbury Land Trust, who maintain a nature preserve and trailhead on the property to the north of the farm.

Field Notes

Listed on the State Register of Historic Places 6/04/2014. Barn Complex and Hog Barn Owned by the Roxbury Land Trust.

Use (Historic)

dairy

Use (Present)

dairy

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Demolished

n/a

Location Integrity

Original Site

Related features

Environment features

Relationship to surroundings

This property, colloquially known as Good Hill Farm, is located to the west of Woodbury, in a rural residential area that straddles the border of Woodbury and the adjacent town of Roxbury. Good Hill Farm is a working farm encompassing 476 acres, 221 of which are in Woodbury. The agricultural complex is located on a 5.3-acre parcel just to the north of Good Hill Road. In addition to the seven agricultural buildings, the property also contains a c. 1850 house.
The c. 1850 house is located to the west of the agricultural complex. It is a 2-story, 3-bay structure with a rectangular plan, eave-entry and a cross-gable roof. The main façade faces south, and the ridgeline runs east-west, parallel to Good Hill Road. The main façade is symmetrical and the center bay contains two doors with four lights. The two flanking bays contain pass-through doors and 4/4 double-hung sash windows with trim and shudders. On the 2nd story, there are four 4/4 double-hung sash windows with trim and shudders, the two in the outer bays forming part of a gabled wall-dormer. There is a single-story portico supported by four unadorned posts. On the east gable-end, there is bay window on the first story, above which is a twinned window with trim. The house appears to be covered in painted clapboard siding. The roof is covered with asphalt shingles. At the northeast corner of the main house, there is a gable-roof addition, its ridgeline running perpendicular to that of the main house. Along the east eave-side from south to north there is a pass-through door, two windows, another pass-through door, and an overhead garage door. On the second story, there are two windows housed in gabled wall-dormers.

To the north, west, and south of the property are open fields. To the east are woods.

Building Typology

Materials

Structural System

Roof materials

Roof type

Gambrel
Shed

Approximate Dimensions

n/a

Date Compiled

02/26/2011

Compiled By

E. Reisman & T. Levine; reviewed by CT Trust

Sources

Field notes and photographs by Melissa Antonelli - 2/6/2008.

Town of Woodbury’s Tax Assessor Records: www.equalitycama.com/tvweb/Details.aspx?city=Woodbury&uid=283400 (Parcel ID: 066-008: 5.35 acres: c. 1850 house, 2,931 sq. ft.: c. 1910 barn, 2,000 sq. ft. Frame barns (3): frame shed: sheds (2))
http://www.cogcnvgis.com/woodbury/AGS_MAP/
Aerial Mapping:
http://maps.google.com accessed 02/26/2011
http://www.bing.com/maps accessed 02/26/2011.

“The Campaign to Save Our Farms.” Roxbury Land Trust accessed on 02/26/2011 http://www.roxburylandtrust.org/farms.html

Sexton, James, PhD, Survey Narrative of the Connecticut Barn, Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, Hamden, CT, 2005, http://www.connecticutbarns.org/history.

Visser, Thomas D., Field Guide to New England Barns and Farm Buildings, University Press of New England, 1997.

Historic Barns of Connecticut

Barn Record Woodbury