Armsmear ("meadow of arms"), also known as the Samuel Colt Home, is a historic house located at 80 Wethersfield Avenue in

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

. It was the family home of firearm manufacturer

Samuel Colt Samuel Colt (; July 19, 1814 – January 10, 1862) was an American inventor, industrialist, and businessman who established Colt's Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company (now Colt's Manufacturing Company) and made the mass production of r ...

. Armsmear was listed as a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1976; this designation was expanded in 2008 to form the

Coltsville Historic District Coltsville Historic District is a National Historic Landmark District in Hartford, Connecticut. The district encompasses the factory, worker housing, and owner residences associated with Samuel Colt (1814-1862), one of the nation's early innovato ...

, a

National Historic Landmark District National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

History

Armsmear was planned for Colt's 1856 marriage to Elizabeth Hart Jarvis, and constructed in 1856 to designs by an unknown architect, possibly local architect Octavius Jordan or factory engineer H. A. G. Pomeroy, on grounds overlooking the recently completed

Colt Armory The Colt Armory is a historic factory complex for the manufacture of firearms, created by Samuel Colt. It is located in Hartford, Connecticut along the Connecticut River, and as of 2008 is part of the Coltsville Historic District, named a National ...

. It was described by a contemporary thus: "an Italian villa in stone, massive, noble, refined, yet not carrying out any decided principle of architecture, it is like its originator, bold and unusual in its combinations." It features a low-pitched roof, heavy bracketed cornice, round-arched doors and windows, iron balconies, Italianate tower and details, and Turkish domes and pinnacles. The Colts occupied Armsmear in 1857 and promptly began to develop its gardens. Landscape architects

Cleveland and Copeland Cleveland and Copeland were a noted American landscape architecture firm. The firm was organized by Horace William Shaler Cleveland (H.W.S. Cleveland) and Robert Morris Copeland. They were responsible for Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord, Massachu ...

provided the plans. Unusual, glass-domed conservatories, inspired by London's

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...

, were added in 1861–1862. Ultimately the estate contained some of greenhouses, as well as ponds, fountains, and a deer park. The house and manicured grounds were the primary residence of Samuel Colt and his family. The Colts entertained lavishly at the estate, holding large parties that were the highlight of the Hartford society season. Samuel Colt lived in Armsmear for approximately 5 years from 1857 until his death in 1862. He was buried on the grounds of Armsmear near the graves of Sam and Elizabeth's young children, amidst a copse of weeping willows known as the 'Grove of Graves.' Following her husband's death, Elizabeth Hart Colt and her son

Caldwell Hart Colt Caldwell Hart Colt (November 24, 1858 – January 21, 1894) was an American inventor and yachtsman. Biography Caldwell Hart Colt was born in Hartford, Connecticut, the son of Samuel Colt, founder of Colt's Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Com ...

lived together in the large home for several decades. In 1894, Elizabeth had Samuel Colt and four of their children buried at Armsmear reinterred to Cedar Hill Cemetery. After Elizabeth Colt died in 1905, the house was converted to a home for Episcopal women (in 1911) under the terms of her will. The residential community to this day is administrated by the Colt Trust. She also gave of Armsmear's grounds to create Hartford's

Colt Park Colt Park is a city park in the southeast Hartford, Connecticut neighborhood of Sheldon/Charter Oak. The park was established from the former Armsmear Estate of Samuel Colt and Elizabeth Jarvis Colt which was gifted to the city upon her death i ...

. The city has subsequently replaced the greenhouse, garden, and ponds with ball fields and a skating rink.

References

Sources

* * * * {{National Register of Historic Places Houses completed in 1856 Houses in Hartford, Connecticut Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut Historic American Buildings Survey in Connecticut Historic district contributing properties in Connecticut Italianate architecture in Connecticut Villas in the United States 1855 establishments in Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in Hartford, Connecticut Colt family