United States Department of the Interior National Park Service This

NPS

Form

10-900

OMB

No.

1024-0018

(Rev.

Aug.

2002)

^Expires

12-31-2005)

United

States

Department

of

the

Interior

National

Park

Service

NATIONAL

REGISTER

OF

HISTORIC

PLACES

REGISTRATION

FORM

' - -,,..

>miiijflfti

p4pj7

~

This

form

is

for

use

in

nominating

or

requesting

determinations

for

individual

pFopeTiSil^and

districts.

See

instructions

in

How

to

Complete

the

National Register

of

Historic Places

Registration

Form

(National

Register

Bulletin

16A).

Complete

each

item

by

marking

"x"

in

the

appropriate box or

by

entering

the

information

requested.

If

any

item

does

not

apply

to

the

property

being

documented,

enter

"N/A"

for

"not

applicable."

For

functions,

architectural

classification,

materials,

and

areas

of

significance, enter

only

categories

and

subcategories

from

the

instructions.

Place

additional

entries

and

narrative

items

on

continuation

sheets

(NPS

Form

10-900a).

Use

a

typewriter,

word

processor,

or

computer,

to

complete

all

items.

1.

Name

of Property

historic

name

Glenville

Historic

District

other

names/site

number

Sherwood's

Bridge

2.

Location

street

&

number

Glen

Ridge

Road:

4

Glenville

Road:

243,

245,

248, 249,

251,

266

Glenville

Street:

1,

5,

6,

9,

15,

23, 25,

27, 30, 34, 36,

38

Pemberwick

Road:

328,

334,

340,

449,

450

Riversville

Road:

2,

12,

14,

24,

26,

28,

30

Weaver

Street:

259, 263,

267

city

or

town

Greenwich

state

zip

code

Connecticut

code

CT

06831

county

Fairfield

Code

001

not

for

publication

N/A

vicinity

N/A

3.

State/Federal

Agency

Certification

As

the

designated

authority

under

the

National

Historic

Preservation

Act,

as

amended,

I

hereby

certify

that

this

%

nomination

__

request

for

determination

of

eligibility

meets

the

documentation

standards

for

registering

properties

in

the

National

Register

of

Historic

Places

and

meets

the

procedural

and

professional

requirements

set

forth

in

36

CFR

Part

60.

In

my

opinion,

the

property

X

meets

__

does

not

meet

the

National

Register

Criteria.

I

recommend

that

this

property

be

considered

significant

__

nationally

K

statewide

__

locally.

(

__

See

continuation

sheet

for

additional

comments.)

Signature

of

certifying official

Date

J.

Paul

Loether,

Deputy

State

Historic

Preservation

Officer

Commission

on

Culture

&

Tourism,

Historic

Preservation

£

Museum

Division

State

or

Federal

Agency

or

Tribal

government

In

my

opinion,

the

property

__

meets

__

does not

meet

the

National

Register

criteria.

(

__

See

continuation

sheet

for

additional

comments.)

Signature

of

commenting

official/Title

Date

State

or

Federal

agency

and

bureau

4.

National

Park

Service

Certification

I,

hereby

certify

that

this

property

is:

J

entered

in

the

National

Register

_

See

continuation

sheet.

__

determined

eligible

for

the

_

National

Register

__

See

continuation

sheet.

__

determined not

eligible

for

the

_

National

Register

__

removed

from

the

National

Register

__

other

(explain):

__________

Signature

of

Keeper

Date

of

Action

5.

Classification

Ownership

of

Property

(Check

as

many

boxes

as

apply)

categories

from

instructions)

MID-19

CENTURY

LATE-VICTORIAN

LATE

19

&

20

CENTURY

REVIVALS

LATE

19

&

EARLY

20

CENTURY

AMERICAN

MOVEMENTS

Greek

Revival/Gothic

Revival

Italianate/QueenAnne/Stick/Romanesque

Revival

Georgian

Revival

Craftsman

Materials

(Enter

categories

from instructions)

foundation

STONE:

Granite;

Brick

roof

ASPHALT;

STONE:

Slate

walls

ASBESTOS;

METAL:

Aluminum;

SYNTHETICS:

Vinyl; BRICK;

STONE:

Granite;

STUCCO;

WOOD:

Weatherboard,

Shingle;

ASPHALT

other

WOOD;

CONCRETE

8.

Statement

of

Significance

Applicable

National

Register

Criteria

(Mark

"x"

in

one

or

more

boxes

for

the

criteria

qualifying

the

property

for

National

Register

listing)

__X_

A

Property

is

associated

with events

that

have

made

a

significant

contribution

to

the

broad

patterns

of

our

history.

__

B

Property

is

associated

with

the

lives

of

persons

significant

in

our

past.

_X_C

Property

embodies

the

distinctive characteristics

of

a

type,

period,

or

method

of

construction

or

represents

the

work

of

a

master,

or

possesses

high

artistic

values,

or

represents

a

significant

and

distinguishable

entity

whose

components

lack

individual

distinction.

__

D

Property

has

yielded,

or

is

likely

to

yield

information

important

in

prehistory

or

history.

Criteria

Considerations

(Mark "X"

in

all

the

boxes

that

apply.)

__

A

owned

by

a

religious

institution

or

used

for

religious

purposes.

__

B

removed

from

its

original

location.

__

C

a

birthplace or

a

grave.

__

D

a

cemetery.

___

E

a

reconstructed

building,

object,

or

structure.

__

F

a

commemorative

property.

__

G

less

than

50

years

of

age

or

achieved

significance

within

the

past

50

years.

Areas

of

Significance

(Enter

categories

from instructions)

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

ETHNIC HERITAGE: EUROPEAN

Period

of

Significance

1718-1955

Significant

Person

(Complete

if

Criterion

B

is

marked

above)

Cultural

Affiliation

Architect/Builder

9.

Major

Bibliographical

References

(Cite

the

books,

articles,

and

other

sources

used

in

preparing

this

form

on

one

or

more

continuation

sheets.)

on

file

(NPS)

__

preliminary

determination

of

individual

listing

(36

CFR

67)

has been

requested.

_X_

previously

listed

in

the

National

Register

_

previously

determined

eligible

by

the

National

Register

__

designated

a

National

Historic

Landmark

__

recorded

by

Historic

American

Buildings

Survey

#

______

__

recorded

by

Historic

American

Engineering

Record

#

______

Primary

Location

of

Additional

Data

_X_

State

Historic

Preservation

Office

__

Other

State

agency

__

Federal

agency

_

Local

government

__

University

__Other

Name

of

repository:

_________

10.

Geographical

Data

Acreage

of

Property 33.918

UTM

References

(Place

additional

UTM

references

on

a

continuation

sheet)

Zone

Easting

Northing

Zone

Easting

Northing

1.

18

612200

4544100

3.

18

612140

4543240

2.

18

612560

4543500

4.

18

611900

4543600

11.

Form

Prepared

By

name/title

Nils

Kerschus,

consultant

organization

Glenville

Preservation

Association

date

October

2005

street

&

number

125

Warner

Hill

Road,

Unit

58

telephone

203

378-8253

city

or

town

Stratford

state

CT

zip

code

06614

NPS

Form

10-900-a

OMB

No.

1024-0018

(8-86)

(Expires

12-31-2005)

United

States

Department

of

the

Interior

National

Park

Service

NATIONAL

REGISTER

OF

HISTORIC

PLACES

CONTINUATION

SHEET

Section

_7

Page

_1_

Glenville

Historic

District,

Greenwich, Fairfield,

Connecticut

Narrative

Description

The

Glenville

Historic

District comprises

the

historic

core

of

the

village

of

Glenville,

located

in

the

Town

of

Greenwich,

Connecticut,

about

two

miles

west

of

its

downtown.

The

district

can

be

readily

defined

by

its

two

primary

topographical

features:

a

central,

winding valley

running

in

an

east-

west

direction

at

an

elevation

of

130

feet;

and

the steep-sided

Byram River

which

runs

in

a

north-

south

direction,

its

channel

bisecting

the

aforesaid

valley.

Unusual

in

its

east-west

orientation

and

virtually

enclosed

by

rather

steep,

partially

wooded

hills,

this

valley

or

glen

provides

a

natural route

for

Glenville

Road,

the

area's

principal

highway,

which

leads

to

downtown

Greenwich.

While

this

glen

gave

the

community

its

name,

the

river

was

responsible

for

its

formation,

derived

from

the

industry

attracted

to

the

river's

waterpower

which

is

most

evident

at

the

30-foot

high

granite

dam,

the

latest

of

several

constructed

to

augment

the

river's

natural

falls

(Inventory

#39,

Photograph

#1).

Besides

Glenville

Road,

the

district

encompasses

portions

of

five

streets,

all

major

thoroughfares

which

converge

at

this

historic

hub.

Glenville

Street

is

the

western

continuation

of

Glenville

Road

after

crossing

the

Byram

River.

This

street

abruptly

turns

south

at

the

intersection

with

Glen Ridge

Road

which

continues

in

a

westerly

direction,

climbing

a

steep

wooded

hill.

Riversville

Road

runs

northerly

from

its

intersection

with

Glenville

Road,

just

east

of

the

bridge

over

the

Byram

River.

Further

to

the

east,

Pemberwick

Road

runs

southwesterly

from

Glenville

Road

and

then more

southerly,

descending

in

elevation

to

run

alongside

the

river,

while

Weaver

Street,

to

the

east,

runs

in

a

southerly

course

from

Glenville

Road

but

climbs

a

steep

hill.

The

district

contains

57

resources

of

which

51

contribute

to

its

significance.

The

contributing

resources

include

two

mill

buildings,

a

former

elementary

school,

a

firehouse,

a

mansion

converted

to

office

use,

a

veteran's

clubhouse, two

commercial

buildings,

five

mixed

commercial

and

residential

buildings,

ten

one-family

dwellings,

four

two-family

dwellings,

one

three-family

dwelling,

and

15

outbuildings,

primarily

garages

and

barns.

There

are

also

four

structures

(two

bridges,

a

dam,

and

a

well),

and

four

sites:

mill yard, mill

pond,

factory

yard,

and

Glenville

Green.

The

six

non-contributing

resources

were

either

built

or

radically

altered

after

1955 and

include

two

large

brick

buildings

at

the

mill,

a

community

center

in

the

Green,

a

gas

station

and

two

houses.

The

district

can

best

be

described

by

first

acknowledging

the

open

space

which

characterizes

most

of

the

central

valley

which

is

an

essential

component,

not

only

for

the

space

itself

and

the

extensive

vistas

it

allows,

but

as

a

setting

for

the

buildings

located

within

it

and

as

a

foreground

for

the

buildings

facing

it.

This continuous

open

space

consists

of

Glenville

Green

on

the

east

side

of the

river

(Inventory

#43,

Photograph

#2),

the

former

Glenville

School

property

to

the

south

(Inventory

#42,

Photograph

#3),

and

the

former

mill

property

on

the

west

side

of

the

river

including

the

mill

pond

(Inventory

#s

19,

20,

Photograph

#s

4

&

5).

All

three

of

these

properties

are

located

south

of

Glenville

Road

and

its

extension,

Glenville

Street,

forming

a

continuous,

park-like

expanse

of

17.78

acres.

Each

of

these

multi-acre

lots

contains

a

prominent

landmark.

The

former

Glenville

School

(Inventory

#42,

Photograph

#6)

was

built

of

brick

in

1920-21

in

the

Georgian

Revival

style

with

a

T-

shaped

plan,

its

projecting,

perpendicular

auditorium

wing

including

the

main

entrance,

spanned

by

a

large,

leaded

fanlight

and

sheltered

by

a

pedimented,

tetrastyle

portico,

its

columns

characterized

by

NPS

Form

10-900-a

OMB

No.

1024-0018

(8-86) (Expires

12-31-2005)

United

States

Department

of

the

Interior

National

Park

Service

NATIONAL

REGISTER

OF

HISTORIC

PLACES

CONTINUATION

SHEET

Section

_7__

Page

_2

Glenville Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

unusual

capitals

comprising

a

fluted

necking

rimmed

by

acanthus

leaves.

Located

at

the

northern

end

of

Glenville

Green,

the

Glenviiie

Firehouse

was

built

in

1950,

also

in

brick,

in

a

modified

Georgian

Revival

style

featuring

rusticated

quoins

and

symmetrically

placed

garage

doors

framed

by

brick

piers

and

surmounted

by

a

single

prominent

entablature

including

its

name

(Inventory

#9,

Photograph

#7).

Located

directly

across

the

millpond

to the

west

is

the

large Queen

Anne

dwelling

erected

in

1886

for

the

felt

mill's

superintendent

(Inventory

#17,

Photograph

#8).

It

features

paired

front

gables

lit

by Palladian

windows

and

covered

by

wavy-patterned

shingles,

a

half-timbered

west

gable,

a

front-

gabled

porte-cochere,

and

a

stepped

stair

window

at

the

rear

elevation.

Located

at

the

south

end

of

the

mill

pond,

where

its

waters

descend

over

the

dam,

are

the

two

remaining

mill

buildings,

both

constructed

of

brick:

the

New

Mill

and

the

Depot

Building.

The

New

Mill

is

a

three-story

Romanesque

Revival

edifice

constructed

in

1881

and

characterized

by

a

battlemented

roofline,

an

attached four-

story,

centrally

placed

tower

with

corbelled

battlements,

and

intricate

brickwork

forming

a

variety

of

window

arches,

belt

courses,

dentil courses,

and

pilasters

(Inventory

#41,

Photograph

#9).

Although

visible

from

the

central

open

space,

its

impact

is

not

as

pronounced

as

the

district's

other

large

buildings,

not only

because

of

its

off-side

location

but

also

because

it

rises

from

a

lower

elevation

and

faces

west

towards

the

ravine

below

the

dam.

Situated

a

short

distance

to

the

east

is

the

long,

114-story,

side-gabled

Depot

Building

constructed

in

1879

in

a

transitional Stick

style/Queen

Anne

design

(Inventory

#40,

Photograph

#

10).

Its

decorative

wooden trim

includes

triangular

paired

brackets

supporting

its

eaves,

foliated

outwork

peak

ornaments

on

the

main

gables

and

eight

dormers,

and

prominent

curvilinear

rafter

ends.

Now

occupied

in

part

by

a

mixed-use

brick

complex

built

in

1984,

the

area

directly

to

the

west

and

south

formerly

included

a

much

larger

assemblage

of

factory

buildings

that

reflected

virtually

the

entire

165-year

industrial history

of

the

site.

A

footbridge

that

replaced

an

older

span

in

1955

leads

to

the

south

end

of

the

mill

yard

which

includes

the

site

of

the

original

grist

mill

of

1718,

the

nucleus

of

the

community,

located

somewhere between

the

footbridge

and

the

1867

dam

(Inventory

#s

19,

36,

Photograph

#11).

Most

of

the

district's

remaining

buildings

face

its

open

space

and

are

generally

smaller

in

scale

comprising

houses

and

commercial

buildings.

Connecting the

two

sides

of

the

community

is

the

concrete

arched

bridge

crossing

the river

at

Glenville

Street.

Faced

with

cut

granite,

it

replaced

an

older

span

in

1948

(Inventory

#10,

Photograph

#12).

To

the

west,

a

row

of

four

buildings

on

the

north

side

of

Glenville

Street

commences

with

a

two-story

commercial/residential

building

built

in

1855

and

expanded

and

remodeled

in

the

Italianate

style

in

1882

(Inventory

#11,

Photograph

#13).

Rising

directly

from

the

river,

its

foundation

flush

with

the

river's

bulkhead,

it

features

a

continuous

bracketed

cornice

and

a

two-story

front

porch

showing

an

identical

cornice,

chamfered

posts,

and

lateral,

bow-

shaped

brackets.

is

a

side-gabled

vernacular

Greek

Revival

dwelling

featuring

a

side-lit

entry

framed

by

pilasters,

frieze-band

windows

at

the

second

story,

and

diamond-shaped

attic

windows

of

Gothic

Revival

derivation

showing

quatrefoil

mullions (Inventory

#14,

Photograph

#14).

To

the

rear

of

these

buildings

four

barns,

several

dating

to

the

19

century,

form

an

L-shaped

complex

enclosing

a

courtyard

(Inventory

#s

12,

13,

15, 16).

NPS

Form

10-900-a OMB

No.

1024-0018

(8-86)

(Expires

12-31-2005)

United

States

Department

of

the

Interior

National

Park

Service

NATIONAL

REGISTER

OF

HISTORIC

PLACES

CONTINUATION

SHEET

Section

_7_

Page

_3___

Glenville Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

Further

to

the

west

is

the

Andrew

Pottgen

House,

a

larger,

2V£-story

Queen

Anne

dwelling

that

retains

its

front

porch,

supported

by bracketed,

turned

posts, and

features

a

symmetrical,

cross-gabled

roof,

the

centered

front

gable

showing

scalloped

shingles

and a

king-post

truss

ornamented

with

turned

and

cut-work

elements

while

the

side

gables

feature

similar

treatment

but

without

the

turned

elements

(Inventory

#21,

Photograph

#15).

Ending

the

row

is

a

side-gabled,

2

1

/2-story

dwelling

covered

with

a

spatter-dash

covering

of

stucco

and

surmounting

a

high

basement

occupied

by

a

liquor

store

(Inventory

#24).

Further

west

Glenville

Street

makes

a

90

degree

turn

to

the

south while

Glen

Ridge

Road

continues

to

the

west

as

it

winds

up

a

steep

hill.

At

this

corner,

facing

east,

is

a

two-story front-gabled

store

dating

to

circa

1846

(Inventory

#25,

Photograph #16).

Attached

to

its

south

side

is

the

two-story

Webster

Haight

House,

an

Italianate

dwelling

built

in

1872

with

a

shallow

hipped

roof,

beam-like

modillions

supporting

its

cornice,

frieze-band

windows,

and a

front

porch

showing

a

bracketed

cornice

(Inventory

#26,

Photograph

#16).

To

the

south

is

a

large

board-and-batten

barn

of

Gothic

Revival

influence,

its

centered

front

gable

showing

a

king-post

truss

and

its

side

gables'

boards

featuring

an

overlapping

sawtooth

edge

(Inventory

#28,

Photograph

#17).

On

the

opposite

eastern

side

of

the

street

is

a

214-story,

side-gabled

double

house

built

as

one

of

the

original

dwellings

for

mill

workers

circa

1840

and

showing

a

front

porch

supported

by

chamfered

posts

with

curvilinear

brackets

(Inventory

#30,

Photograph

#18).

To

the

south

is

a

114-

story

stucco

dwelling

of

Craftsman

influence

(Inventory

#31,

Photograph

#

18),

followed

by

a

three-

story

building

constructed

in

1856

which

is

distinguished

by

a

hipped

roofline

accented

by

a

centered

cross

gable

of

Itaiianate

influence

at

the

facade

and

transformed

into

a

gable

at

the

rear

elevation

(Inventory

#33,

Photograph

#18).

On

the

east

side

of

the

river,

Riversville

Road

runs

northerly

from

Glenville

Road,

its

west

side

including

seven

buildings,

the

third

being

the

former

1904

firehouse

now

remodeled

into

a

veteran's

clubhouse

(Inventory

#46).

Following

its

large

parking

lot

are

two

vernacular

dwellings,

the

first

showing parallel

front

gables

and

the

second showing

a

centrally

placed

gabled wall

dormer.

Both

retain

their

front

porches

and

are

set

close

to

the

street

(Inventory

#s

47,

49,

Photograph

#19).

The

front-gabled

house

was

built

in

1887

as

the

Philip

Finnegan

House,

set

back

from the

street

and

featuring

Queen

Anne

elements

including

a

front

porch

and

a

basement-level

side

porch,

both

retaining

their

turned

posts

and

curvilinear

brackets,

the

latter

perforated

at

the

front

porch

(Inventory

#50,

Photograph

#20).

The

row

of

buildings

extending

along

the

east

side

of

Riversville

Road

and

continuing

along

the

north

side

of

Glenville

Road

are

not included,

having

replaced

the

original

buildings

over

the

last

50

years.

Further

east,

however,

the

historic

streetscape

reappears

on

Glenville

Road

with

an

enclave

of

four

dwellings

built

into

the

hillside

overlooking

the

valley.

The

most

prominent

is

the

John

Chmielowiec

Building,

located

directly

on

the

street

and

consisting

of

a

2

1

/S-story,

front-gabled

dwelling

surmounting

a

high,

cut-granite basement

containing

a

restaurant

lit

by

transomed

plate-

glass

windows.

The

basement's

cut-granite

construction extends

to

the first

story

which

features

an

L-shaped,

Tuscan-columned,

first-story

porch

sheltering the

house's

main

entrance

to

the west

and

surmounting

the

basement-level

restaurant

(Inventory

#2,

Photograph

#21).

To

the

rear,

but

still

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Glenville

Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

visible

due

to

its

higher

elevation,

is

the

Michael

Dorsey

House,

a

long,

side-gabled,

2%-story

dwelling

built

in

1863

and

also

showing

a

high

basement

but

with

a

full-length

two-story

porch

supported

by

chamfered

posts

(Inventory

#4).

to

the

west

is

a

114-story

vernacular l-house

with

a

full-length

enclosed

porch and

frieze-band

windows

(Inventory

#6).

Running

south

from

Glenville

Road

is

Weaver

Street,

climbing

a

hill

and

overlooking

the

former

school

ground

to

the

west.

It

is

lined

with

three

vernacular,

mid-19

th

-century

dwellings,

the

first

and

third

retaining

their

front

porches

and

diminutive

scale, showing

close

proximity

to

the

street

despite

having

rather

spacious

yards,

and

the

first

house

also

retaining

a

covered

well

(Inventory

#s

52,

55,

56,

Photograph

#22).

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Glenville

Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

Inventory

GLEN RIDGE

ROAD

1.

4

20

th

-century

vernacular,

1940

C

GLENVILLE

ROAD

2.

243

JOHN

CHMIELOWIEC

BUILDING,

20th-century

C

vernacular,

1909,

Rafael

De

Masi,

Domenico

Lupinacci,

builders

C

NC

C

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

243

245

248

249

251

266

GLENVILLE

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

1

5

6

9

15

garage,

1933

MICHAEL

DORSEY

HOUSE,

19

th

-century

vernacular,

1863

20

th

-century vernacular,

1959

vernacular

l-house,

1865

garage,

c.

1925

19

th

-century

vernacular,

1877

GLENVILLE

FIREHOUSE,

Georgian

Revival,

1950

STREET

Concrete

arch bridge,

1948,

Paul

Bacco

&

Son,

builder

Italianate,

1855,

1882

(2

nd

story),

John Sherwood,

(2

nd

story)

barn/garage,

c.

1900

barn/garage,

c

1885

.

vernacular

Greek

Revival/

Gothic

Revival,

c.

1840

barn/garage,

c.

1885

garage/apartment,

c.

1900

builder

SUPERINTENDENTS

HOUSE,

Queen

Anne,

1886

20

th

-century

commercial,

1941,

expanded

1981

Mill

yard,

1718

Mill

pond,

1718,

1867

(present

level)

ANDREW

&

BERTHA

POTTGEN

HOUSE,

Queen

Anne,

1

898

shed,

c.

1900

garage,

1931

20

th

-century

vernacular,

1929

C

c

NC

C

c

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___

25.

26.

27.

28.

29.

30.

31.

32.

33.

34.

35.

23

25

27

30

34

36

38

7_

Page

_

6__

Glenville

Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

DUSENBERRY-HAIGHT

STORE,

19

th

-century

commercial,

c.

1846,

1951

addition

WEBSTER

HAIGHT

HOUSE,

Italianate,

1872

Neocolonial,

2003

Gothic

Revival

barn,

c.

1860

barn,

c.

1880

19

th

-century

vernacular,

c.

1840

vernacular

Craftsman,

1934

garage,

1933

GLENVILLE

HOUSE

HOTEL,

vernacular

Italianate,

1856

garage/apartment,

c.

1860

20

th

-century

vernacular,

1976

C

NC

C

NC

PEMBERWICK

ROAD

36.

37.

38.

39.

40.

41.

42.

43.

328

334

340

449

450

20

th

-century

commercial,

1984

Factory

yard,

1814

footbridge,

1955,

County

Iron

Works

of

Westchester,

Inc.,

builder

dam,

1867

DEPOT

BUILDING,

Stick

style/Queen

Anne,

1879

NEW

MILL,

Romanesque

Revival,

1881,

George

Mertz,

builder

WESTERN

GREENWICH

CIVIC

CENTER

(Glenville

School),

Georgian

Revival,

1920-21,

James

O.

Betelle,

architect,

Rangeley

Construction

Co.,

builder

GLENVILLE

GREEN

(Castle

Yard),

c.

1840

NC

C

RIVERSVILLE

ROAD

44.

2

20

th

-century

commercial,

1949

NC

45.

12

20

th

-century

commercial,

1948

C

46.

14

NINTH

DISTRICT

VETERANS

ASSOCIATION

C

(Protection

Company

No.

1),

20

th

-century

commercial,

1904

47.

24

20

th

-century

vernacular,

1907

C

48.

24

garage,

c.

1925

C

49.

26

20

th

-century

vernacular,

1910

C

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Glenville

Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

50.

28 PHILIP

FINNEGAN HOUSE,

vernacular

Queen

Anne,

C

1887

51.

30

20

th

-century

vernacular,

1905

C

WEAVER

STREET

52.

259

19

th

-century

vernacular,

1873

C

53.

259

garage,

1949

C

54.

263

19

th

-century

vernacular,

1871

C

55.

267

vernacular

l-house,

1863

C

56.

267

well,

c.

1865

C

57.

267

garage,

1954

C

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Glenville

Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

Narrative

Statement

of

Significance

The

Glenville

Historic

District

is

of

historic

significance

locally

because

it

comprises

the

most

comprehensive

example

of

a

New

England

mill

village

within

the

Town

of

Greenwich,

and

regionally

as

the

primary

example

thereof

in

lower

Fairfield

County

(Criterion

A).

It

is

also

historically

significant

as

one

of

the

town's

major

staging

areas

of

immigrants,

predominantly

Irish

in

the

19

th

century

and

Polish

in

the

20

th

century,

and

the

primary

settlement

of

Poles

in

the

town

(Criterion

A.)

The

district

is

architecturally

significant

because

it

contains

two

elaborate

examples

of

mill

construction,

designed

in

the

Romanesque

Revival

and

a

transitional Stick-style/Queen

Anne;

an

excellent

example

of

a

Georgian

Revival

school;

and

notable

examples

of

domestic

and

commercial

architecture,

including

a

Queen

Anne

mansion

and

an

Italianate

store

building

(Criterion

C).

One

of

a

number

of

distinct

villages within

the

Town

of

Greenwich, Glenville

is

defined

by

its

historically

industrial

character

which

contrasts

strikingly

with

the

prevailing

image

of

the

town

proper

as

an

affluent

suburb

of

New

York

City.

In

fact

it

can

be

accurately

categorized

as

a

New

England

mill

village,

the

most

comprehensive

example

within

the

town

and

southern

Fairfield

County

as

well.

Glenville

owes

its

very

existence

to

the

industry

attracted

by

its

situation

at

the

falls

of

the

Byram

River.

Its

location

was

essentially

selected

by

Josiah

Quinby,

a

Quaker

from

nearby

Westchester

County, New

York,

who

was

given

permission

by

the

town

to

build

two

mills

on

the

Byram

River,

a

sawmill

in

1717

and

a

gristmill

in

1718.

The

area's

first

roads

were

laid

out

in

1717

to

provide

access

to

the

site

Quinby

selected

for

his

sawmill:

Weaver

Street,

leading

northerly

from the

"Country

Road,"

that

is,

the

Boston

Post

Road;

Glenville

Road,

leading

westerly

from

Horseneck,

present-day

downtown

Greenwich;

and

the

lower

end

of

Riversville

Road,

connecting

Glenville

Road

to

the

sawmill.

Constructed

a

short distance

downstream,

the

gristmill

would

become

the

nucleus

for

the

industrial

complex

of

later

years.

Located

on

the

river's

west

bank,

across

from

later

factory

buildings,

it

was

still

in

existence

in

1867

when

it

was depicted

in

the

Beers,

Ellis

&

Soule

atlas

(Inventory

#19).

The

first

mention

of

industrial

activity

was

in

1806

when

the

gristmill

was

sold

along

with

one

half

of

a

carding

machine.

The

first

factory

building

was

apparently

constructed

in

1814,

mentioned

in

the

deed

from

Jared Peck

to

the

Byram

Manufacturing

Company

in

September

of

that

year

but

not

in

January

when

Peck

bought

the

property

from

Jonathan

Secor.

The

Byram

Manufacturing

Company

had

been

organized

the

year

before

"for

the

purpose

of

manufacturing

cloth

and

fabrics

of

woolen

and

cotton."

In

1820

this

company

constructed

a

stone

building

that

would

become

the

nucleus

of

an

extensive

factory

complex

(Inventory

#37).

In

1829

the

property

and

its

buildings

were

sold

to

Samuel

G.

and

George

Cornell

of

Brooklyn,

who

converted

most

of

the

factory

to

the

production

of

lead

for

paint.

The

23-year

ownership

of

the

Cornell

family

was

largely

responsible

for

the

manner

in

which

the

village

would

develop.

They

apparently

spearheaded

the

construction

of

the

southerly

portion

of

Glenville

Street

in

1830

as

a

more

direct

route

to Port

Chester,

New

York

(then

called Sawpit),

the

area's

primary

business

center,

thus

avoiding

the

extremely

steep

route

of

colonial

origin

along

present-day

Glen

Ridge

Road.

By

1844.

they

had

constructed

nine

dwellings

for

mill

workers

and

an

elaborate

stone

castle

for

Samuel

himself.

This

edifice,

reputedly

transported

stone

by

stone

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_

Glenville Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

England,

was

located

approximately

where

the

present

firehouse

is

located,

at

the

northern

end

of

Glenville

Green.

The

remainder

of

the

property

was

landscaped

with

gardens

and

became

known

as

the

Castle

yard.

At

the

south

end

of

this

property

Cornell

commissioned

the

construction

of

the

Emmanuel

Episcopal Chapel

in

1842

for

his

employees,

most

of

whom

were

English.

Both

castle

and

chapel

are

long

gone,

the

castle

having

been

dismantled

in

1891

reportedly because

of

an

epidemic

among

its

residents,

the

building

having

been

converted

into

a

tenement

for

mill

workers.

The

Castle

yard,

however,

remained

as

open

space,

becoming

the

nucleus

of

the

central

open

space

that

characterized

the

scattered

layout

of

the

village

(Inventory

#43).

Because

of

a

decrease

in

the

number

of

parishioners,

the

chapel

discontinued

services

and

was

dismantled

in

1910.

Of

the

original

ten

houses

built

by

the

Cornells,

only

the

double

house

at

30

Glenville

Street

remains

today,

although

a

small,

much

altered

dwelling

on

Sioux

Place,

outside

of

the

district,

may

also

date

to

this

period.

Besides

transforming

the

existing

hamlet

then

known

as

Sherwood's

Bridge

into

a

bona

fide

village,

Cornell

may

have also coined

the

name

Glenville

which

appeared

in

print

as

early

as

1848

when

Cornell

organized

the

Glenville

Manufacturing

Company

to

produce "sheet

lead,

lead

pipe,

linseed

oil,

litherage,

red

lead,

cotton goods,

and

grinding

plaster

and

grain

of

every

kind."

In

1852

Ralph

Henry

Isham

acquired

the

property

from

Isaac

Cornell,

built

a

new

4

1

/2-story

mill

around

the

stone

mill,

and

introduced

the

manufacture

of

felt

at

the

mill,

while

keeping

"Glenville"

in

the

new

company's

name:

The

Glenville

Woolen

Mills.

The

development

of

the

village

itself

was closely

tied

to

the

growth

of

the

mill

complex,

virtually

every

household

dependent

directly

or

indirectly

on

its

fortunes.

In

1856

Pemberwick

Road

was

laid

out,

the

last

of

the

district's

thoroughfares

to

take

shape

and

constructed

primarily because

Weaver

Street,

the

original

highway

to

the

Post

Road,

was

considered too

winding

and

hilly

to

accommodate

the

increasing

traffic

generated

by

the

mill

and

the

village

itself.

At

that

time Glenville's

incipient

downtown

included

a

blacksmith shop,

several

grocery

stores,

a

post

office

within

one

of

these

stores,

and

a

schoolhouse,

the

latter

located

at

the

northern

end

of

the

village,

on

Riversville

Road.

The

district's

earliest

commercial structure,

23

Glenville

Street,

dates

to

this

period

and

originally

featured elaborate

jigsaw-cut

bargeboards

of

Gothic

Revival

derivation

typical

of

this

era

(Inventory

#25,

Photograph

#16).

Under various

ownerships,

the woolen

mills

continued to

grow

into

a

sizable assemblage

of

factory

buildings

and

increasingly

specialized

in

the

production

of

felt,

producing

the

first

woven

felt

in

the

United

States,

previously

only

manufactured

in

Europe.

In

1867

the

currently

existing,

cut-granite

dam

was

constructed,

producing

the

present

shoreline

of

the

millpond.

By

1875

the

complex

consisted

of

seven

connected

buildings

and

about

a

half

dozen

separate

buildings

prominently

depicted

in

a

sketch

and

survey

drawn

for

the

mill's

new

owners,

William

J.

Tingue

and

Charles

House,

who

merged two

woolen

companies

in

which

felt

was

a

major

product

and

manufactured

their

products

under

the

name

Hawthorne

Woolen

Mills,

named

after

Tingue's

felt

mill

destroyed

by

fire

in

Hawthorne,

New

Jersey,

in

that

same

year.

Under

Tingue's

direction

the

two

mill

buildings

that

remain

today

and

the

superintendent's

house

were

constructed,

their

architectural

distinctiveness

reflecting

the

success

of

the

mills'

operations.

NPS

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PLACES

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Page

_3_

Glenville

Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

The

Depot

Building

or

Picking

House

was

built

in

1879

as

the

company's

freight

depot

for

a

railroad

that

was

never

built,

and

utilized

for

the

storage

of

raw

materials:

wool,

fur

and

hair

(Inventory

#40,

Photograph #10).

The

New

Mill

was

built

in

1881

as

the

mill's

centerpiece

and

focal

point,

appointed

with

an

array

of

modern

facilities

including

an

automatic

sprinkler

system,

the area's

first

telephone

system,

the

second

electric

generator

produced

by

Thomas

Edison

(now

on

display

at

Ford's

Edison

Institute

at

Greenfield

Village,

Dearborn,

Michigan),

and

the

first

electric

lights

in

the

area.

The

latter

enabled

night

shifts

at

the

factory

and

created

a

tourist

attraction

because

of

the

novelty,

people

taking

the

train

to

Port

Chester

and

switching

to

horse-drawn

carriages

to

take

them

to

Glenville

(Inventory #41,

Photograph

#9).

The

superintendent's

house

was

built

in

1886

on

a

large

landscaped

lot

comprising

the

north

end

of

the

mill

yard

and

located

across

the

millpond

from

the

site

of

Cornell's

castle

(Inventory

#17,

Photograph

#8).

This

imposing

Queen

Anne

mansion

continued

the

symbolic

presence

of

the

factory's

upper

management

in

the

heart

of

the

village

and

formalized

the

property's

open

space

with

park-like

landscaping,

thus

extending the

village's

central

open

space

initiated with

Cornell's

castle

yard

45

years

earlier.

The

1880

census

revealed

that

Glenville

had

grown

into

a

village

of

474

people

with

two-thirds

of

its

households

including

from

one to

nine

individuals

employed

at

the

woolen

mills.

The

company

owned

21

dwellings, including

single

and

double

houses

and

at

least

one

boardinghouse. Also

reflecting

the

growth

of

the

community

was

the

new

Glenville

School,

built

in

1882

on

a

lot

just

east

of

the

mills,

the

first

schoolhouse

in

the

Town

of

Greenwich

to

be

constructed

of

brick.

Perhaps

because

so

much

of

the

village's

downtown

was

open

space,

the

commercial

area

had

a

scattered

or

dispersed

layout

of

buildings.

Although

most

fronted

directly

on

the

street,

none

were

cheek-by-jowl

in

placement,

and

the commercial

streetscape

was

often

interrupted

with

one-family

dwellings,

some

on

good

sized

lots.

Density

never

approached

that

of

downtown

Greenwich

or

even

the outlying

commercial

districts

of

East

Port

Chester

(Byram) or

Mianus.

Businesses

tended

to

concentrate

around

the

village's

two

major

intersections:

Glenville

Road

and

Riversville

Road,

and

Glenville

Street,

its

southern

extension,

and

Glen

Ridge

Road.

These

establishments

included

a

billiard

hall,

a

bakery,

several

grocery

stores,

and

a

three-story

hotel,

the

latter

known

as

the

Glenville

House,

still

standing

today

as

a

mixed

commercial

and

residential

building

at

36

Glenville

Street

(Inventory

#33,

Photograph

#18).

Another

prominent

survivor

of

this

period

is

1

Glenville

Street,

rising

straight

from

the

river

and

originating

as

a

one-story

wheelwright

shop

built

in

1855

which

acquired

a

second

story

and

two-story

front

porch

embellished

with

Italianate

details

in

1882

(Inventory

#11,

Photograph #13).

Glenville

continued to

grow

steadily

throughout

the

first

20

years

of

the

20

th

century.

In

1899

the

mills

were purchased

by

the

American

Felt Company,

formed

by

the

four

largest

felt

companies

in

the

country,

the

Glenville

plant

being

their

largest

facility,

and

as

such

becoming

the

largest

and

most

diversified

manufacturer

of

felt

in

the

country,

if

not

the

world.

Their

read:

"What

Pittsburgh

is

to

steel...what

Detroit

is

to

automobiles...what

Butte

is

to

copper...Glenville

is

to

felt."

In

1902

St.

Paul

Roman

Catholic

Church

was

constructed

on

Glenville

Street

in

a

Shingle-style

design;

it

had

heretofore

existed

as

a

mission

of

St.

Mary

Church

in

Greenwich,

organized

in

1889

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States

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Page

_4_

Glenville

Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

because

of

the

large

increase

in

the

village's

Irish

population.

In

1903

the

village

obtained fire

protection

with

the

formation

of

the

Protection

Engine

Company

No.

1,

its

firehouse

completed

in

the

following

year

on

Riversville

Road

(Inventory

#46).

The

1920

census

showed

that

Glenville

had

increased

in

population

to

812

people

while

the

felt

mill

had

expanded

to

the

point

where

it

employed

a

substantial

amount

of

workers

from

neighboring

communities.

The

zenith

of

Glenville's

development

can

perhaps

be

symbolized

by

the

construction

of

the

new

Glenville

School

in

1920-1921,

which

replaced

the

1882

structure,

now

seriously

overcrowded.

Designed

in

the

Georgian

Revival

style

with

an

imposing

classical

portico,

it

provided

a

symbolic

focus

to

the

community

in

a

geographic

sense,

by

virtue

of

its

centralized

location

in

Glenville's

central

open

space now

including

the

expanded school

grounds,

and

in

a

social

sense,

being

large

enough

to

accommodate

a

variety

of

community

functions

(Inventory

#42,

Photograph

#6).

During

the

1920s

the

Indian

Spring

Land

Company,

the

real

estate

company

owned

by

the

J.

Stillman

Rockefeller

family,

acquired

hundreds

of

acres

of

land

on

Riversville

and

Glenville

Roads,

most

of

it

beyond

their

mansions which

were

closer to

central

Greenwich

than

Glenville.

Not

satisfied

with controlling

this essentially

vacant

land,

the

company

also

purchased

adjacent

lots

with

16

dwellings,

several

stores,

and

numerous

outbuildings

which

they

demolished

in

favor

of

additional

woodland,

resulting

in

a

correspondingly

less

urbanized

Glenville.

Meanwhile,

the

felt

company

demolished

most

of their

workers

housing,

foreshadowing,

perhaps,

the

ultimate

dissolution

of

the

factory

complex

itself

and

further

contributing

to

the

contraction

of

the

village.

Still,

most

of

the

vacant

land

to

the

south

and

west

of

the

village was

eventually

developed

by

local

residents

and

increasingly

by

middle-class

buyers

from

adjacent

communities,

many

of

whom

had

no

connection to

the

felt

company,

especially

during

the

post-war

period.

The

most

notable

addition to

the

village

during this

period

of

change

was

the

construction

of

the

Glenville

Firehouse

in

1950

at

the

north

end

of

Glenville

Green.

Constructed

of

brick,

its

modified

Georgian

Revival

design

complemented

Glenville

School

to

the

south

and

provided

an

additional

municipal

focus

for

the

village,

especially

prominent

as

the

vista

termination

for

Riversville

Road

(Inventory

#9,

Photograph

#7).

The

original

firehouse

was

subsequently

acquired

as

a

clubhouse

for

the

Ninth

District

Veterans

Association

(Inventory

#46).

The

following years

witnessed

the

gradual decline

of

the

felt

mill's

importance

and

the

abrupt

departure

of

St.

Paul

Church,

hastened

by

its

destruction

by

fire

in

1968

and

the

congregation's

subsequent

move

to

a

new

building

on its

King

Street

property,

well

beyond

the

village.

Glenville School

was

closed

in

1975,

replaced

by

the

present

building north

of

the

district,

but

it

was

recycled

as

the

Western

Greenwich

Civic

Center,

thus

maintaining

its

role

as

the

community's

municipal

focus.

In

1968

the

felt

mill

was

acquired

by

GAF

(the

General

Aniline

and

Film

Corporation),

at

that

time

forming

a

conglomerate

in

which

the

felt

company

was

a

minor

and

ultimately

disposable

component.

The

valuable

land

was

subsequently

sold

off

in

1978

to

Greenwich

Associates,

a

real

estate

and

development

company

headed

by

Ralph

Schacter

and

Seymour

Schwartz,

who

transformed

the

mill

complex

into

office

space

and

condominiums,

restoring

the

two

most

architecturally

significant

mill

buildings,

the

Depot

Building

and

the

New

Mill,

and

preserving

the

superintendent's

house

on

Glenville

Street

and

its

surrounding,

landscaped

open

space (Inventory

#17,

Photograph

#s

8,4).

This

unusually

sensitive

redevelopment

precipitated

Glenville's

second

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No.

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the

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OF

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CONTINUATION

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Section

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Page

_5_

Glenville

Historic

District,

Greenwich,

Fairfield,

Connecticut

wave

of

gentrification,

opening

the

floodgates

of

real

estate

speculation

to

a

village

that

was

suddenly

no

longer

a

remote

factory

town

but

an

up-and-coming

suburban

community.

Unfortunately,

much

of

the

subsequent

development

has

not

been

sensitive

to

the

historic

character

of

the

village

and

has

resulted

in

replacing

typically

small-scaled

residential

and

commercial

buildings

with

larger

and

often

particularly

pretentious

examples,

in

many

instances

strikingly

out

of

scale

and

out

of

character

with

the

historic

streetscape.

Glenville

has

long

been

one

of

the

town's

major

staging

areas

for

immigrants,

in

this

case

attracted

by

employment

in

the

mills.

It

is

best

known

as

the

primary

settlement

of

the

town's

sizable

Polish

population

but

historically

the

Irish

also

figured

prominently,

particularly

in

the

19

th

century.

The

importance

of

ethnic

identity

is

characteristic

of

this

and

similar

traditionally

working-class

neighborhoods

in

Greenwich,

further

setting

them

apart

from the

wealthier

ethnically

homogenized

neighborhoods

that

typify

the

town

as

a

whole.

Glenville's

ethnic

character

dates

back

to

the

village's

formation

in

the

1840s

when

Samuel

Cornell

commissioned

the

construction

of

the Emanuel

Episcopal

Chapel

for

his

English-bom

factory

workers

who,

while

differing

linguistically only

in

their

particular

accent,

were

apparently

Anglican

in

religion

in

an

area

that

was

dominated

by

Baptists

and

Methodists.

By

1860

the

English

numbered

40

but

were

soon

outnumbered

by

the

Irish

who

totaled

256

in

1880

or

over

half

of

the

village's

population.

In

response

to

this

large

increase,

St.

Paul

Roman

Catholic

Church

was

organized

as

a

mission

of

St.

Mary

Church

in

Greenwich.

The

church

building

was

erected

in

1902,

its

stained-glass

windows

bearing

the

names

of

their

Irish

donors.

By

this

time,

however,

the

parishioners

had

become

predominantly

Polish.

By

1920

the

Irish

population

had

declined

to

66,

the

aspirations

of

many

having

outgrown

the

confines

of

a

one-industry

town.

If

Glenville

and

the

felt

factory

were

synonymous

during

the

20

th

century,

so

was

its

Polish

character.

The

first

Poles

did

not

arrive

in

Glenville

until

after

1885,

when

the