Barn Record Mansfield

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Building Name (Common)
Williams-Salter Barn
Building Name (Historic)
Williams-Salter Barn
Address
572 Storrs Road (Rte 195), Mansfield
Typology
Overview

Designations

Historic Significance

Architectural description:

This is a 1 ½-story eave-entry barn. The main façade faces southwest and the ridge-line is parallel to Storrs Road, which at this point runs approximately northwest to southeast. The main entry is an open centered elliptical arched bay, which appears to be boarded up. A portion of the foundation is revealed at the south corner, consisting of field-stone. The northwest gable-end of the barn appears to be blank. The northeast eave-side of the barn appears to be blank. The southeast gable-end of the barn appears to be blank. The barn is covered in vertical siding painted red. The roof is covered in asphalt shingles. The foundation is field-stone.


Historical significance:

The oldest barns still found in the state are called the “English Barn,” “side-entry barn,” “eave entry,” or a 30 x 40. They are simple buildings with rectangular plan, pitched gable roof, and a door or doors located on one or both of the eave sides of the building based on the grain warehouses of the English colonists’ homeland. The name “30 by 40” originates from its size (in feet), which was large enough for 1 family and could service about 100 acres. The multi-purpose use of the English barn is reflected by the building’s construction in three distinct bays - one for each use. The middle bay was used for threshing, which is separating the seed from the stalk in wheat and oat by beating the stalks with a flail. The flanking bays would be for animals and hay storage.


Historical background:

The site is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Mansfield Center Historic District. The nomination focuses on the history of Rev. Williams and the house itself, which is considered to be of great architectural importance in the state of Connecticut and one of the oldest in Mansfield. The property remained in successive generations of ownership of the descendants of Rev. Eleazer Williams, the family. It is likely Rev. Williams’s grandson John Williams Salter built the barn.

A historic photograph reveals two recessed arches flanking the current main entry, these arches were likely aesthetic rather than structural, in keeping with the architectural trends of the early nineteenth century. The photograph also shows the roof has been enlarged from the original likely from it’s alteration from a traditional wood shingle roof to the current asphalt.

Field Notes

The barn which is shown in the early photo ca. 1874 is the same barn that exists today and may have been built as early as 1711 when the house was built for the first minister, Eleazer Williams. This is a three-bay English style barn. The center bay was filled in in the late 1980s but the boards were recessed to show off the original arch. The Mansfield Historical Society has designated the Williams-Salter house as the oldest documented house in the town of Mansfield.

Use & Accessibility

Use (Historic)

Use (Present)


Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Demolished

n/a

Location Integrity

Unknown

Environment

Related features

Environment features

Relationship to surroundings

The barn is to the east of the 1710 house with which it is associated. To the west of the barn is a well. Directly south of the barn is the neighboring property. The entire site is bordered by stone walls, with the exception of the border along Storrs Road which has a picket fence. The total size of the site is .90 acres. The area surrounding the site is light residential, open land and woodlands.

Typology & Materials

Building Typology

Materials


Structural System

n/a

Roof materials


Roof type


Approximate Dimensions

30 ft. x 15 ft.

Source

Date Compiled

03/12/2011

Compiled By

TR Revella & T. Levine, reviewed by CT Trust

PhotosClick on image to view full file