Bronson Barn (230 Parmelee Hill Road, Durham (Central Valley))

Designations

n/a

Historic Significance

Architectural description:

This is a 2 ½ - story four-bay barn with entries from both the eave-side and the gable-side and a salt-box roof addition on its west eave-side. The north gable-side of the barn faces Parmelee Road with the ridge line running north-south, almost perpendicular to the road. The main façade of the barn is the four-bay east eave-façade with the main entrance in the first bay from the north through an open bay with chamfered corners. The façade appears to have an exterior-hung sliding hay-door centered above the main entrance. The east eave-façade has two other secondary entrances through two exterior-hung sliding pass-through doors, one each in the second bay and the third bay from the north. A six-pane stable window can be seen at the second floor level separating the two pass-through doors while two pairs of one-over-one double-hung sash windows can be seen above the pass-through door towards the south. The first bay from the south has four pairs of one-over-one double-hung sash windows, two pairs each on the first floor level and the second floor level. The grade level along the façade abruptly drops beyond the second bay from the north towards the south which suggests that the last two bays from the south could be later additions to the original two-bay barn. The north gable-side of the barn has a square window opening towards the east with the gable attic above separated by a distinct dropped girt siding divide line. The west eave-side of the barn has the salt-box roof addition covering the first bay and the second bay from the south. The first floor level of the west eave-side of the salt-box roof addition is punctuated by six square six-pane windows while two hinged hay doors can be seen at the second floor level. The hinged hay door towards the south appears to be boarded. The north side-wall of the salt-box roof addition protruding out of the main barn has two six-pane stable windows, one each in the first and the second floor levels. The second bay from the north of the west eave-side of the main barn has a six-pane stable window at the second floor level, off-set towards the south. The south gable-side of the barn has a wagon-door entrance off-centered towards the west, flanked by windows on either side. The gable attic above appears to have a window just below the apex of the roof.

The wooden frame of barn is supported on cement plastered masonry foundation. The barn has asphalt shingle roofing and red-painted vertical siding while the west eave-side of the salt-box roof addition has horizontal clap-board siding.

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

n/a

Use (Historic)

agriculture

Use (Present)

unknown

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Demolished

n/a

Location Integrity

Unknown

Related features

Barn
Shed

Environment features

Relationship to surroundings

The 4.88 acres property, parcel number - P0183200 and map number 76, is towards the south of Parmelee Hill Road situated in a predominantly residential area. Residential plots can be seen towards the east, south and north of the property, across the road, while dense woodland covers the area towards the west.

The barn is located towards the north the the property, offset from the Parmelee Hill Road. The circa 1911 old style main residence is situated towards its north, nearer to the road. The property is accessed by a through driveway that surrounds the main residence, separating it from the barn and its out-buildings. A 1 – story gable-roof shed with red painted vertical siding is located towards the north-west of the barn. The ridge line of the main barn runs north-south almost perpendicular to the Parmelee Hill Road while that of the shed runs east-west. A small shed-roof out-building can be seen towards the south of the barn, off-set towards the east. Two other 1 –story gable-roof sheds can be seen towards the east of the barn, one offset towards the south and the other towards the north-east. Dense woodland covers the area towards the south-west of the barn while parcels of open land can be seen towards the south.

Building Typology

Materials

Structural System

Roof materials

Asphalt Shingle

Roof type

Approximate Dimensions

Barn: 1644 SqFt Shed: 252 SqFt Shed: 192 SqFt Shed: 336 SqFt Shed: 320 SqFt, Circa 2003

Date Compiled

08/31/2010

Compiled By

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

Sources

Photographs and field-notes provided by – Jim McLaughlin

Assessors’ records retrieved on January 27th, 2011 from website http://durham.univers-clt.com

Map and property records retrieved on January 27th, 2011 from website http://www.townofdurhamct.org

Photograph/Information retrieved on January 27th, 2011 from website http://www.google.com

Photographs/Information retrieved by Charlotte Hitchcock on August 31st, 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 Durham