The Daniel Basset House is a historic house at 1024 Monroe Turnpike in
Monroe, Connecticut
Monroe is a town located in eastern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 18,825 at the 2020 census.
Monroe is largely considered a bedroom community of New York City, New Haven, and Bridgeport.
History
On May 15, 1 ...
, built in 1775. It is significant for its association with events in the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
. It is documented to have hosted a ball for French officers of
Lauzun's Legion
The 5th Hussar Regiment (''5e régiment de hussards'' or ''5e RH'') was a French Hussar regiment.
Formation under the Ancien Régime
The 5th Hussar Regiment was formed under the Ancien Régime. It was the last regiment created under the monarch ...
on June 30, 1781; the legion had been encamped near the village center of Monroe. The house was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 2002.
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Description and history
The Daniel Basset House is located northeast of the village center of Monroe on the east side of Monroe Turnpike in front of Masuk High School. It is a -story wood-frame structure set on almost of land, five bays wide, with two brick chimneys and a side gable roof. Its centered entrance is flanked by sidelight windows and pilasters, and topped by a transom window. The second floor extends slightly over the first floor on the front façade. The interior follows a central hall plan. A key feature is a large chamber on the second floor which likely served as a ballroom.[ and ]
The house was built in 1775. In the summer of 1781, the French army marched through Connecticut led by the comte de Rochambeau
Marshal Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau, 1 July 1725 – 10 May 1807, was a French nobleman and general whose army played the decisive role in helping the United States defeat the British army at Yorktown in 1781 during the ...
on their way to Virginia and the eventual Siege of Yorktown
The Siege of Yorktown, also known as the Battle of Yorktown, the surrender at Yorktown, or the German battle (from the presence of Germans in all three armies), beginning on September 28, 1781, and ending on October 19, 1781, at Yorktown, Virgi ...
. The bulk of Rochambeau's army took an east–west route which passed north of Monroe, eventually encamping at Newtown and then marching through Ridgefield toward New York. Rochambeau detached Lauzun's Legion
The 5th Hussar Regiment (''5e régiment de hussards'' or ''5e RH'') was a French Hussar regiment.
Formation under the Ancien Régime
The 5th Hussar Regiment was formed under the Ancien Régime. It was the last regiment created under the monarch ...
, a cavalry regiment, to parallel the army's march some to the south. This unit camped near the village center of Monroe on June 30. That evening, a ball was held in this house in honor of the French forces. It was the last entertainment for the troops, as they needed to be on heightened alert as they approached British-held New York City.
See also
* March Route of Rochambeau's army
*List of historic sites preserved along Rochambeau's route
A series of sites along the Washington–Rochambeau Revolutionary Route have been listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places or otherwise recognized and preserved. Buildings or roadway or other artifacts at these sites have been ...
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Basset, Daniel, House
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut
Houses completed in 1775
Monroe, Connecticut
Houses in Fairfield County, Connecticut
Historic places on the Washington–Rochambeau Revolutionary Route
National Register of Historic Places in Fairfield County, Connecticut
Buildings and structures in Monroe, Connecticut