Nathan Lester House

The Nathan Lester House is a historic house museum at 153 Vinegar Hill Road in the Gales Ferry section of Ledyard, Connecticut. Built in 1793, it is a well-preserved example of an unpretentious late 18th-century farmhouse, and one of the few houses of that age left in the town. It is located on over 136 acres (55 ha) of land, now owned by the town, which serves as a park and conservation land with trails. Is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.[1]

Nathan Lester House
Nathan Lester House photographed in 2014
Location153 Vinegar Hill Rd., Ledyard, Connecticut
Coordinates41°25′24″N 72°3′8″W
Area110 acres (45 ha)
Built1793 (1793)
NRHP reference No.72001328[1]
Added to NRHPJune 30, 1972

Description and history

The Nathan Lester House is located in a rural setting east of the village of Gales Ferry, on the east side of Vinegar Hill Road at its junction with Long Cove Road. The 110-acre property is mostly wooded, with a long drive providing access to the farmstead. The main house is a ​2 1⁄2-story wood-frame structure, five bays wide, with a side-gable roof, clapboard siding, and a large central chimney. The interior follows a typical central chimney plan, with a narrow entry vestibule that has a winding staircase, and parlors to either side of the chimney. The kitchen extends across much of the rear, with a large fireplace and bake oven. Small chambers at the rear corners may have served as pantry space or bedrooms originally; one now connects to ells extending to the rear of the main block.[2]

The house was built in 1793 by Nathan Lester, on land that had been purchased by his grandfather Peter.[2] It is one of small number of 18th century houses in the town.[3] The property historically included a large oak tree of great antiquity, whose trunk had a diameter in excess of 5 feet (1.5 m); it died in 1970. The property remained in the Lester family until 1908; the area surrounding the farmhouse was given to the town by the subsequent owners in 1965.[2]

The farmhouse, outbuildings and farm museum with tools are owned by the Town of Ledyard, and are open to the public in the summer.

See also

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. "NRHP nomination for Nathan Lester House". National Park Service. Retrieved 2018-03-16.
  3. Jan Cunningham (April 25, 1992). "National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation: Historic and Architectural Resources in Ledyard, Connecticut" (pdf). National Park Service. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
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