Opposite the Old Campus, on Chapel Street, in New Haven, Connecticut: from when the glaciers melted, stewarded by the Quinnipiac people; in 1614, charted by a Dutch explorer; in 1638, colonized by Puritans; before, during, and after the American Revolution, home of the Founding Father, Roger Sherman, his wife Rebekah, their fifteen children, and the Sherman family store; in 1860, Gaius F. Warner's Italianate villa, by Henry Austin; in 1880, Carll's Opera House; in 1884, the Republican League; in 1887, the Hyperion; in 1903, the Union League Club, by Richard Williams; in 1926, the Roger Sherman Theater; beginning in 1977, a tradition of French fine dining, which continues today. While the Roger Sherman house is no longer standing, it holds up all right.
"The New Haven home of Roger Sherman — signer of the Bill of Rights, Articles of Confederation, Declaration of Independence, and Constitution of the United States — was drawn by hand for, 'The Commonwealth of Connecticut, Tercentenary Edition, 1635 - 1935,' by Amy Drevenstedt, 'published for your entertainment and enlightenment by the Children's Bookshop of 33 Wall Street, New Haven.'"
"Very early the next morning, General George Washington reviewed the local troops on the Green and set out to continue their journey, escorted as far as the historic 'Neck Bridge' by the Second Company of the Governor's Guard, another uniformed company and the company that had been recruited from the students of Yale College, and accompanied by a great number of the inhabitants of the town. Noah Webster, heading the procession with his fife, or to use his own words, 'It fell to my humble lot to lead this company with music.'"
"On September 23, 1779, Captain John Paul Jones fought a battle without parallel in naval history. Hitherto the contest upon the sea had been mainly a predatory warfare of privateers, aimed at the destruction of commerce and the plunder of merchant vessels. The young republic was without a navy proper. Called 'Pirate Jones' by the English, for retaliating on the coast of England for the atrocities committed on the coast of America, the captain of the Bon Homme Richard gallantly refused the sword of the surrending captain of the Serapis — but did take his ship."
"A handwritten working draft of the Bill of Rights — the only such document known to exist — has been found and identified in the most likely of places: the Library of Congress. This early draft was written by Representative Roger Sherman of Connecticut on an unknown date in July 1789 while the first Congress was meeting in New York. Sherman, a longtime judge of the Connecticut Superior Court who became a Senator in 1791, served with Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin on the committee that drafted the Declaration of Independence. He was the only framer to sign all three original founding documents — the Declaration, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution."
"The charm of these old houses lies in their intimate association with the history and growth of the colony, for they show a logical reason for their existence in that they were in accord with the needs and conditions of the times and answered the twofold purpose of clearing the forests and using the lumber to meet the demands of the settlers. Many of the old houses are gone and others are fast falling into decay, for the wooden buildings of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries lack the durability of modern construction."
"Although New Haven has about 100,000 inhabitants, a six-story building is quite a novelty here. The Chicago 'sky scrapers' are heard of the world over, and have aroused our conservative real estate proprietors, and several new structures in modern style are contemplated. Mr. H. Warner's new six-story building next to the Republican League is attracting much attention."
"The variety of vegetables raised would be a marvel to Roger Sherman. The coming of men of many nationalities has created changes in productions. Tomatoes, egg-plant, celery, cauliflower, kale, dandelions, asparagus, radishes, lettuce, cucumbers and onions are among the products of the skillful market-gardener, whose Association advances his knowledge and protects his interests. Connecticut is coming to be famous for its fruit."
"Voted, That the streets in the City of New Haven be named as follows, viz.: The street from Captain Samuel Munson's corner to Thomas Howell, Esq.'s shop, State Street. The street from Cooper's corner to Captain Robert Brown's corner, Church Street. The street from Dixwell's corner to Dunbar's corner, College Street. The street from Tench's corner to Andrus' corner, York Street. The street from Captain Samuel Munson's corner to Tench's corner, Grove Street. The street from Bishop's corner to Darling's corner, Elm Street. The street from Rhode's corner to Mr. Isaac Doolittle's corner, Chapel Street..."
"The east wall of the Mix house, according to measurements of the various maps, stood about 250 feet from the corner of College street, or upon the spot where Warner hall now stands, the premises occupying on this side a space of about one-half the driveway between the present Union league house and Warner hall."
-Image courtesy of the Internet Archive, Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center, “History of the city of New Haven to the present time,” by Edward Elias Atwater, 1887 "General George H. Ford has in this week's Chronicle an illustrated article on 'Roger Sherman and His New Haven Home,' which is extremely interesting, as well as… Continue reading Number of houses 157.
Roger Sherman house 