Windsor Village Historic District (Windsor, Vermont) Explained

Windsor Village Historic District
Coordinates:43.4806°N -72.3869°W
Added:April 23, 1975
Refnum:75000212
Increase:July 25, 1997
Increase Refnum:97000828
Increase2:December 1, 2014
Increase2 Refnum:14001036
Area:50acres (original)
1.2acres (size of 1997 increase)

The Windsor Village Historic District is a historical district in the center of Windsor, Vermont. It includes several dozen properties which were built in the 18th, the 19th, and in the beginning of the 20th centuries, built in different architectural styles. The district is listed on the National Register of Historic Places since April 23, 1975.[1]

Originally, the district was designated along Main Street, Depot Avenue, and State Street through and including Court Square. Later, Phelps Ct. was added.

History

In 1777, in the Old Constitution House, which is a part of the district, the constitution of the Vermont Republic was drafted. Initially, Windsor was a part-time capital of the Republic, and it remains the seat of Windsor County. This guaranteed an influx of population to the town. Many of newcomers were highly educated professionals. The location of Windsor on the banks of the Connecticut River provided an easy access to transportation routes, and this access was further reinforced by the construction of a railway in 1847. In the 19th century, Windsor was a prosperous industrial and administrative center. This resulted in intensive construction, with industrial-related buildings concentrated on the Main Street and Depot Avenue, including the railway station, and residential buildings located on State Street and in the northern end of Main Street. By the end of the 19th century, the major industrial enterprises in Windsor were producing water pumps, firearms, machine tools, and cotton.[1]

Properties

As of 1975, the list of properties included the properties listed below.[1] In 1997, three properties on Phelps Court and State Street were added.[2] It was again enlarged in 2014.

NameImageAddressYear builtStyleNotes
1 House 9 Main Street circa 1900
2 House 15 Main Street circa 1900 Vernacular Queen Anne
3 Jesse Lull House 17 Main Street 1806
4 Carlos Coolidge House 21 Main Street 1806 Federal
5 Naham Trask House 25 Main Street 1796 Federal
6 House 29 Main Street circa 1890 Vernacular Queen Anne
7 Samuel Patrick Jr. House 33 Main Street circa 1825 Federal
8 Luther Mills House 35 Main Street circa 1840
9 House 37 Main Street
10 House 39 Main Street
11 Congregational Parsonage 41 Main Street
12 House 43 Main Street
13 House 49 Main Street
14 Unitarian Church Main Street 1846 Gothic revival
15 United States Post Office 57 Main Street 1856-1859 It is the oldest active post office building in the United States.[3]
16 Tuxbury Block 61 Main Street 1898 High Victorian Italianate
17 Stone Tracy Block 65 Main Street 1888 Italianate revival
18 Amsden Block 23 Depot Avenue circa 1890 Italianate revival
19 Central Vermont Railway Freight Station circa 1850
20 Depot Avenue circa 1905
21 Putnam Block 85-89 Main Street 1914
22 Colby Block 105 Main Street 1831 Federal
23 Sherman Block 107-113 Main Street
24 House 133 Main Street
25 Windsor Diner135 Main Street 1955 Moved to Windsor in 1958
26 House 137 Main Street
27 House 139 Main Street
28 House 145 Main Street Vernacular Queen Anne
29 Municipal Building (Windsor Fire Station) 147 Main Street 1929
30 House 149 Main Street 1790 Colonial
31 House 151 Main Street
32 House 153 Main Street
33 Reuben Dean House 161 Main Street circa 1770 Rebuilt in 1899
34 Methodist Parsonage 165 Main Street
35 Rachel Harlow Methodist Church Main Street 1895
36 Clement Pettes House 156 Main Street circa 1825 Federal
37 Shubael Wardner House 150 Main Street circa 1825 Federal
38 Old South Congregational Church 128 Main Street 1798 Federal Vermont's earliest Federal church, designed by renowned architect Asher Benjamin in 1797. Reconstructed in 1844, 1879, and 1922.
39 Old Apothecary Shop (Old Bank Building) 108 Main Street 1804
40 Isaac Green House (Knights of Columbus) 106 Main Street 1792
41 Nathaniel Leonard House (Masonic Lodge) 104 Main Street 1785
42 Bianchi Block 88-94 Main Street 1915
43 Merrifield Block 82-86 Main Street 1849
44 Stiles-Billings Block (Rexall Drugs) 80 Main Street circa 1870
45 Miller-Stuart Block 9 State Street circa 1830
46 Old Windsor Savings Bank Block 15 State Street circa 1820
47 Annex to Old Windsor Savings Bank Block 15 State Street circa 1870
48 St. Paul's Episcopal Church 27 State Street 1820-1822 Classical styleAn early work by the Boston architect, Alexander Parris. The building survives essentially unaltered and is in good condition.[4]
49 Episcopal Parsonage 37 State Street
50 House 39 State Street
51 Windsor Library 43 State Street Georgian Revival circa 1905
52 Rufus Emerson-Gilbert Davis House (Davis Home) 45 State Street Federal 1831
53 House 46 Court Square Federal circa 1800
54 Johonnot House 44 Court Square Federal circa 1830
55 House 40 Court Square
56 McIndoe House 5 Court Street Gothic Revival 1840
57 House 10 Court Street Vernacular Queen Anne circa 1890
58 House 8 Court Street Gothic Revival circa 1860
59 House 6 Court Street Greek Revival circa 1840
60 Windsor Town Hall (American Legion Hall) Court Street Romanesque 1888
61 Old Windsor County Courthouse (Carleton Hall) 24 State Street 1786 Moved to the current location in 1888
62 Commercial Block 16 State Street
63 Commercial Block 12 State Street
64 Commercial Block 10 State Street
65 Tontine Block (Windsor News Co.) 70 Main Street circa 1825
66 J. J. Newberry Co. 64-68 Main Street 1929
67 Pettes-Journal Block (Vermont National Bank) 60 Main Street Federal 1824
68 Old Namco (National Acme Machine Company) Armory Main Street circa 1910
69 54 Main Street Greek Revival 1836 A separate NRHP listing
70 Thomas Emerson-Edwin Stoughton House (Old Windsor Hospital) 48 Main Street Federal 1836 Served as Windsor's hospital from 1933 until the opening of the Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center in 1972.[5] [6]
71 Baptist Church Main Street Pseudo Gothic Revival 1943
72 Abner Forbes House 38 Main Street Federal 1796
73 Zebina Curtis-William Maxwell Evarts House 34 Main Street Georgian 1796
74 John Skinner House 26 Main Street Federal circa 1820
75 Joseph Hatch (Edminster) House 24 Main Street Federal circa 1825
76 Simeon Ide House 20 Main Street Federal circa 1825
77 Susan Bishop House 18 Main Street Greek Revival
78 Main Street circa 1776 A separate NRHP listing

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Windsor Village Historic District. Connecticut River Joint Commissions. 15 May 2012.
  2. Web site: [{{NRHP url|97000828}} NRHP nomination for Windsor Village Historic District (1997 increase)]. . Liz Pritchett . 1996. 2016-09-12. with
  3. Web site: Courthouse & Post Office, Main Street, Windsor, Windsor County, VT . 2022-06-28 . Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA.
  4. Web site: St. Paul's Episcopal Church, State & Court Streets, Windsor, Windsor County, VT . 2022-06-28 . Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA.
  5. Web site: A History of Community and Caring, Since 1933. mtascutneyhospital.org.
  6. Web site: Historic Homes of Runnemede History. hhrliving.org.