THE HOUSES
Tour-goers are sure to get in the holiday spirit with a viewing of six private Ridgefield homes each with a unique architectural style, from a 1700’s barn to a grand center hall colonial. The homes on the tour are steeped in history and decked out for the holidays. Two are walking distance from Lounsbury House, the site of House Tour Registration with four additional homes a short distance by Holiday House Tour buses.
Tiger Hollow Inc. and the Ridgefield Historical Society would like to extend our very sincere gratitude to the gracious homeowners who have opened their home to support the mission of both Ridgefield not for profits.
The Lewis Bailey House
Built in the late 1860s as the railroad transformed Ridgefield, the Lewis Bailey House is considered the most distinct example of early-Victorian domestic architecture in Ridgefield. Local banker, merchant, and hotel proprietor Lewis H. Bailey built this elegant Italianate Villa, reflecting both his success and Ridgefield’s growing prosperity.
The William Jones House
In December, 1840, William Henry Harrison was the new US president; Charles Goodyear of New Haven was 4 years away from perfecting and patenting what became the Vulcanization of rubber, making it suitable for industrial purposes; and William D. Jones married Julia Ann Mead, the daughter of Nehmiah Mead, a locally prominent farmer, and his wife, Anna (Bartram) Mead.
The Edwin Benedict House
The house located near land believed to be where General William Tryon and his British troops camped for the night following the Battle of Ridgefield, dates from around 1833.
The Book Barn
By 1925 Emmy Sloan had wanted a barn for a while, one she could use as a weekend respite in the country. Visiting friends in Wilton while on week’s leave from her job at the Red Cross Naval Hospital in Washington, DC, she had the good fortune to run into Thomas Winfield Scott, 78, on her search.
The Rectory
Built in 1916 to accompany the newly completed St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, which is celebrating its 300th anniversary in Ridgefield this year, the rectory was designed in a Colonial style by architect William Sunderland of Danbury.
On the Orchard Estate
Close to the Westchester County border, although a relatively new home built in 2011 – it is the ground upon which it stands that tells the story of what once was.
CONTACT US
Holiday House Tour Administrator
Ridgefield Historical Society
4 Sunset Lane
Ridgefield, CT 06877
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