[Part - 2/3] (31 Thrall Road, East Windsor (Central Valley))

Designations

n/a

Historic Significance

Architectural description:

This is a barn complex towards the north of Thrall Road that includes two tobacco sheds, one barn, one garage and two sheds. The 1 ½ -story three-aisle tobacco shed, Shed-I, is located towards the west while a 1 ½ - story gable-entry barn, Barn-I, can be seen towards its north-west. A small salt-box roof shed is located immediately towards the south-east of Barn-I. Another 1 ½- story gable-entry tobacco shed, Shed-II, can be seen towards the south-west of Barn-I while a 1 ½-story eave-entry garage is located towards further south, nearer to Thrall Road. A small gable-roof eave-entry shed can be seen towards the west of the garage. The ridge line of Shed-I runs east-west parallel to Thrall Road while that of Barn-I, Shed-II, the garage and the two outbuildings run perpendicular along north-south.

Barn-I: This is a 1 ½- story three-bay barn with entries from both the gable-side and the eave-side. The south gable-side of the barn faces Thrall Road while the ridge line runs north-south, perpendicular to the road. The main façade of the barn is the three-bay east eave-façade with the main entrance in the middle bay through a pair of exterior-hung sliding wagon doors. The south gable-side of the barn has an entrance towards the western edge through an exterior-hung hooded sliding pass-through door. A second entrance can be seen on the south gable-side off-centered towards the east through a hinged pass-through door with blacksmith hardware. A two-pane window is centered between the two entrances while the gable attic above is separated by a distinct dropped girt siding divide line. A double window with two pairs of twelve-over-twelve double-hung sash windows, can be seen on the south gable-side of the barn, just below the apex of the roof.
The wooden frame of the barn has gray painted vertical siding walls with white trim and corner boards. The barn has asphalt shingle roofing.

A small salt-box roof shed can be seen immediately towards the south-east of the barn. The main façade of the outbuilding is its south gable-side facing Thrall Road with the main entrance through an open bay with chamfered corners. The west eave-side of the outbuilding has two entrances towards the south through two open bays with chamfered corners. The wooden frame of the outbuilding has gray painted vertical siding and asphalt shingle roofing.

Historical significance:

The oldest barns still found in the state are called the “English Barn,” “side-entry barn,” “eave entry,” or a 30 x 40. They are simple buildings with rectangular plan, pitched gable roof, and a door or doors located on one or both of the “eave” sides of the building based on the grain warehouses of the English colonists’ homeland. The New England barn or gable front barn was the successor to the English barn and relies on a gable entry rather than an entry under the eaves. The gable front offers many practical advantages. Roofs drain off the side, rather than flooding the dooryard. Although it was seen by many as an improvement over the earlier side entry English Barn, the New England barn did not replace its predecessor but rather coexisted with it. It this case, both an eave entry and a gable entry are used.

Field Notes

Also see Part - 1/3: http://www.connecticutbarns.org/editor.cgi/21080 Part - 3/3: http://www.connecticutbarns.org/editor.cgi/21084 Gray barn with white trim and small attached shed facing road

Use (Historic)

agriculture

Use (Present)

unknown

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Demolished

n/a

Location Integrity

Unknown

Related features

Environment features

Relationship to surroundings

The 40.40 acres property, Map Number - 37 60 015, is towards the north Thrall Road, located near the intersection of Thrall Road and Middle Road. It is situated in a pre-dominantly residential area of rural character flanked by residential plots towards its north and south. Parcels of farm land with active agriculture can be seen towards the south of the property across Thrall Road while dense woodland covers the area towards the north.
The western edge of the property is defined by cluster of trees while parcels of farm land with active agriculture can cover the area towards the north and the east. A patch of dense woodland can be seen in the south-eastern corner of the property with the building complex including the barns, the outbuildings and the main residence located in the south-western corner, abutting to Thrall Road. The circa 1890 colonial main residence is towards the south-east corner of the building complex with the 1 ½ -story gable-roof three-aisle tobacco shed, Shed-I towards its north. A 1 ½ - storey gable-entry barn, Barn-I can be seen towards the north-west of Shed-I with a small salt-box roof shed located immediately towards the south-east of Barn-I. The property includes another 1 ½- story gable-entry tobacco shed, Shed-II towards the south-west of Barn-I while a 1 ½-story eave-entry garage is located towards further south, nearer to Thrall Road. A small gable-roof outbuilding can be seen towards the east of Barn-II. The ridge lines of the main residence and Shed-I run east-west, parallel to Thrall Road while that of Barn-I, Shed-II, the garage and the two out buildings run perpendicular along north-south.

Building Typology

Roof type

Approximate Dimensions

Barn: 4200 SqFt, Circa 1900 Shed: 384 SqFt, Circa 1900 Barn: 1932 SqFt, Circa 1900 Barn: 1920 SqFt, Circa 1900 Garage: 1600 SqFt, Circa 1940

Date Compiled

12/03/2010

Compiled By

T. Levine and M. Patnaik, reviewed by CT Trust

Sources

Photographs and field-notes provided by – John E. Harmon

Assessors’ records retrieved on December 3rd, 2010 from website http://www.equalitycama.com/

GIS information retrieved on December 3rd, 2010 from website http://www.crcog.org/gissearch/

Photograph/Information retrieved on December 3rd, 2010 from website http://www.google.com

Information retrieved on December 3rd, 2010 from website http://www.zillow.com

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 East Windsor