The Huntington Homestead, also known as the Samuel Huntington Birthplace, is a

historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a v ...

and

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 ...

at 36 Huntington Road (

Connecticut Route 14 Connecticut Route 14 is one of several secondary routes from eastern Connecticut into Rhode Island. It runs from the Willimantic section of the town of Windham to the Rhode Island state line in Sterling. Route description Route 14 b ...

) in

Scotland, Connecticut Scotland is a town in Windham County, Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 1,576. Scotland is a predominantly rural town with agriculture as the principal industry. Scotland is the least populated town in Windham County. G ...

. Built in the early 18th century, it was the birthplace and boyhood home of Samuel Huntington (1731–1796), an American statesman and

Founding Father The following list of national founding figures is a record, by country, of people who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e. ...

. He served as a delegate to the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

, where he signed the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of ...

. He also served as

Governor of Connecticut The governor of Connecticut is the head of government of Connecticut, and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Conne ...

and was the first presiding officer of the

Congress of the Confederation The Congress of the Confederation, or the Confederation Congress, formally referred to as the United States in Congress Assembled, was the governing body of the United States of America during the Confederation period, March 1, 1781 – Mar ...

, the first central government of the United States of America.

Description and history

The Huntington house is a 2½ story wood-frame structure, five bays wide, with a side gable roof and large central chimney. The roof at the rear of the house slopes down to the first floor, giving the house a classic New England

saltbox A saltbox house is a gable-roofed residential structure that is typically two stories in the front and one in the rear. It is a traditional New England style of home, originally timber framed, which takes its name from its resemblance to a woode ...

appearance. A small kitchen wing was added to the east side of the house in the 19th century. The interior has a typical Georgian central-chimney plan, with a vestibule and narrow winding stair in front of the chimney, public rooms to either side, and a large kitchen and small bedroom behind. Upstairs there are three bedrooms. The interior features, including woodwork and plaster, are almost entirely original. The house was built sometime in the first quarter of the 18th century.. The house was declared a

and listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...

in 1971. In 1994 The Governor Samuel Huntington Trust was formed by local citizens to preserve the property. Since 1998 the trust has worked to restore and rehabilitate the property, and has sponsored archaeological work to understand its use. The trust operates it as a

, open for tours from May through October on the first and third Saturday of the month.

Significance

Samuel Huntington was born in this house in 1731, when the area was still part of Windham. He was self-educated in the law, and was admitted to the bar in 1758. Prior to the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolu ...

, Huntington practiced law and served in a variety of legal positions in the

Connecticut Colony The ''Connecticut Colony'' or ''Colony of Connecticut'', originally known as the Connecticut River Colony or simply the River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636 as a settl ...

, including King's attorney, judge, and justice of the peace. He sat in the

Connecticut State Legislature The Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is a bicameral body composed of the 151-member House of Representatives and the 36-member Senate. It meets in the state capital, Hartford. ...

from 1775 to 1784, and also sat in the

during those same years, serving as the body's president between 1779 and 1781. As a member of the Congress in 1776 he signed the

United States Declaration of Independence The United States Declaration of Independence, formally The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen States of America, is the pronouncement and founding document adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting at Pennsylvania State House ...

. He was

from 1786 to 1796, the year of his death.

References

External links

Huntington Homestead
{{National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut Scotland, Connecticut National Historic Landmarks in Connecticut Historic house museums in Connecticut Museums in Windham County, Connecticut Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut Houses in Windham County, Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in Windham County, Connecticut Huntington, Samuel Homes of United States Founding Fathers

Description and history

Significance

See also

References

External links