Historic Barns of Connecticut

Designations

• Local Historic District
• National Register

Historic Significance

Architectural Description:

This is a 1 ½ story carriage barn. The barn faces roughly south with its ridge line running north-south. The main entrance is a pair of arched hinged doors that are centered on the south gable-facade. On either side of the main entry are pass-through doors. Centered above the main entry is an arched haymow door flanked by two-over-two double hung windows. In the attic gable of the south-facade is an ocular window. The west eave-facade has two evenly spaced four-over-four double hung, arched windows. Above each window is a two-over-two double hung arched window. The north gable-facade has a single two pane windows centered on the first floor. The east eave-facade has a pass-through door in the center of the facade with a single pane arched window on the top half of the door. Above the door is a two-over-two double hung, arched window. South of the door is a four-over-four double hung arched window with a two-over-two double hung arched window above. The barn has vertical siding that is painted red with trim that is painted white. Centered on the gable-roof is an Italianate cupola with a hip roof and wooden ventilators on each side. The roof has a large overhang with decorative brackets and asphalt shingles.

Historical Significance:

Until the 1830s, the horses used for riding and driving carriages were often kept in the main barn along with the other farm animals. By the 1850s, some New England farmers built separate horse stables and carriage houses. Early carriage houses were built just to shelter a carriage and perhaps a sleigh, but no horses. The pre-cursor to the twentieth-century garage, these outbuildings are distinguished by their large hinged doors, few windows, and proximity to the dooryard. The combined horse stable and carriage house continued to be a common farm building through the second half of the nineteenth century and the first decade of the twentieth century, until automobiles became common. Elaborate carriage houses were also associated with gentlemen farms and country estates of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Another form of carriage barn, the urban livery stable, served the needs of tradespeople.

Field Notes

2009 Barns Grant recipient. Contributing resource in the Worthington Ridge Historic District.

Use (Historic)

• carriage barn

Use (Present)

• re-use

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Demolished

n/a

Location Integrity

Unknown

Related features

• Barn
• Cupola
• Stone Walls

Environment features

• Residential

Relationship to surroundings

This is one of three 19th-century barns on the 2.83-acre property of the associated house at 121 Sunset Lane. It is set back on property and faces south. The house is a c. 1720 structure located on the north side of Sunset Lane in the Worthington Ridge Historic District. This barn (I) is to the northwest, now situated next to a swimming pool. To its west is a garage and another small barn (II). Northeast of the house is a large 1 1/2-story bank barn (III) with a cupola and additions to the southwest corner (gable-roofed) and north gable-end (gable-roofed but lower than the main barn). Barn III has its main entry in the east eave side, a large barn door in the center of three bays. The northern addition appears to have two door openings for livestock or cars. A modern house was constructed in 1997 to the south of Barn III, subsequent to the listing of the historic district, hence Barn III has now been subdivided on a .63-acre lot, and is under a different ownership.

Building Typology

• Carriage House

Materials

• Concrete
• Vertical Siding

Structural System

• Post & Beam
• Wood Frame

Roof materials

• Asphalt Shingle

Roof type

• Gable

Approximate Dimensions

300 square feet

Date Compiled

05/05/2010

Compiled By

S.Lessard and T. Levine, reviewed by CT Trust

Sources

Photographs by Bill Cink.

Berlin Assessor’s Record: http://data.visionappraisal.com/BerlinCT/findpid.asp?iTable=pid&pid=6668
Parcel ID: 16-3/ 112/ 16A   2.83 Acres
BRN5 Barn 2 Story 300 S.F.
FGR1 Garage - Avg 528 S.F.

Clouette, Bruce, and Roth, Matthew, Worthington Ridge Historic District National Register Nomination No. 89000925, National Park Service, 1989.

Local Historic District, Berlin Historic District 2011, http://gis1.students.ccsu.edu/HistDist/Berlin%20Historic%20District.htm-5/2011.

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.