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Preservation in Action
Ten Stories Of Stewardship: Restoration, Rehabilitation, Renovation, Adaptation, and Reuse
Photographs by Peter R. Brown
Sales Date: 2024-09-03
A one-of-a-kind tour through exquisitely preserved, chronicled and illustrated historic buildings
Preservation in Action is the first publication that tells the compelling story of Old Wethersfield, Connecticut's largest and oldest historic district in its oldest town. Based on original research, with stunning photography and handsome design, through ten examples of restoration, rehabilitation, renovation, adaptation, and reuse, it demonstrates the community's efforts over more than a century to preserve the architectural legacy of its historic village, through individual and institutional commitments, civic planning decisions, historic preservation, and design review.
The examples range from the oldest house in town, with a 17th century addition added thirty years ago, to a 19th century commercial building whose greenhouse was repurposed as a cafe in 2022 and includes the town's old high school whose redevelopment, in a bold partnership between the Town and the Historical Society, together with the Society's redevelopment of another town owned building, has spurred the economic revival of the old village.
Introduction • THE EVOLUTION OF AN AMERICAN BEAUTY, Thomas Chester (Hurlbut-Dunham) House 212 Main Street • A SNUG HOME AND TAVERN AND FICTIONAL WITCH, Belden House and Tavern (Buttolph-Williams House) 249 Broad Street • WASHINGTON DINED HERE (AND SLEPT NEXT DOOR), Silas Deane House 203 Main Street • A PRICELESS EIGHTEENTH CENTURY JEWEL – RESTORED!, The Meeting House (First Church of Christ) 250 Main Street • A RARE BRICK COLONIAL, RECLAIMED AND REVIVED, Dr. Daniel Hooker House 471 Main Street • OUR OLDEST HOUSE, RESCUED FROM MODERNITY, George Hubbard House 481 Main Street • AN ENDURING CENTER OF CIVIC LIFE, Wethersfield High School (Keeney Memorial Cultural Center) 200 Main Street • NINETEENTH CENTURY SPLENDOR, BREAKFAST INCLUDED, Silas W. Robbins House 185 Broad Street • A SEA CAPTAIN'S HOUSE LEARNS FRENCH, Daniel Francis House 357 Main Street • Afterword and Acknowledgements • About the Author • About the Editor • References
ANNE CROFOOT KUCKRO (1945–2010) was a historian and preservationist whose books include Hartford Architecture, Volume One: Downtown (1978); Captain James Francis, Master Builder: Brick Architecture in Wethersfield before 1840 (1974); and Wethersfield: A Tour of Houses and History (1984). PETER R. BROWN is an award-winning architectural and fine art photographer. LEE KUCKRO is a retired attorney and past president of the Wethersfield Historical Society.
"Anne Kuckro invites us to appreciate both the architectural details that distinguish a fascinating collection of buildings in Old Wethersfield and the broader stories behind their preservation. As beautifully illustrated by photographer Peter Brown, her inspiring book reveals the rewarding legacy left by people committed to investing in place."
~Sara C. Bronin, Past Chair, Preservation Connecticut
"Ten houses, ten stories, 101 glorious photographs - this book belongs in the library of everyone who cherishes things of beauty, history, and allure."
~William Hosley, historian and former director of the both New Haven Museum and Connecticut Landmarks