The Elkanah Watson House is a historic house at Lake and South Streets in
Port Kent, New York
Port Kent is a hamlet within the town of Chesterfield, Essex County, New York, United States, on the western shore of Lake Champlain. Its population was last recorded as 217 (141 households). Its ZIP code is 12975.
Seasonal ferry service to Bu ...
. Built in 1828, it was the home of
Elkanah Watson
Elkanah Watson (January 22, 1758 – December 5, 1842) was a visionary traveler and writer, agriculturist and canal promoter, banker and businessman. He was born in Plymouth, Massachusetts and died at Port Kent, New York. He worked in Albany ...
(1758-1842), a businessman and diplomat best known for founding and promoting the idea of
agricultural fair
An agricultural show is a public event exhibiting the equipment, animals, sports and recreation associated with agriculture and animal husbandry. The largest comprise a livestock show (a judged event or display in which breeding stock is exhib ...
s. This house, still a private residence, was his home until his death.
It was designated a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
in 1964.
Description and history
The Elkanah Watson House stands overlooking
Lake Champlain
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, location = New York/Vermont in the United States; and Quebec in Canada
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to the east, at the southwest corner of Lake and South Streets in the village of Port Kent. It is a basically square two-story masonry structure, built out of ashlar granite. It is covered by a truncated hip roof with a square
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at its center. Its front facade is five bays wide, with the center three sheltered by a two-story projecting portico with round columns supporting a pedimented gable. There are distinctive round windows on the ground floor in the outer bays. A porte-cochere of similar design but only a single story in height projects from the center of the south facade.
[ and ]
The house was built in 1828 to a design by Sheldon & Merritt. It was constructed under the supervision of Charles Watson as the residence of his father,
Elkanah Watson
Elkanah Watson (January 22, 1758 – December 5, 1842) was a visionary traveler and writer, agriculturist and canal promoter, banker and businessman. He was born in Plymouth, Massachusetts and died at Port Kent, New York. He worked in Albany ...
. It was the centerpiece of Watson's 5,000-acre property on the lake, of which pieces were later sold off for development.
He occupied the house in May 1828 and also operated a farm on his property. The house was later the residence of Winslow C. Watson, one of his sons and a historian who completed Elkanah's autobiography. Elkanah Watson is buried in the family cemetery located near the house. Most outbuildings from the time the property was a working farm have been removed.
Elkanah Watson was a
Revolutionary-era diplomat, banker and businessman, and an early promoter of canals in New York State. He is best known as the founder of the agricultural fair, which he developed to stimulate competition and best practices. He developed this idea while living in
Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfieldâ ...
, out of an incident where he tethered two
merino sheep
The Merino is a breed or group of breeds of domestic sheep, characterised by very fine soft wool. It was established in Spain near the end of the Middle Ages, and was for several centuries kept as a strict Spanish monopoly; exports of the breed ...
to a tree on the town common. The then-unusual animals drew a great deal of attention, prompting Watson to develop the idea of a broader fair, at which animals could be exhibited, and agricultural methods and practices could be shared. The first fair was held in Pittsfield in 1810.
See also
*
List of National Historic Landmarks in New York
This is a list of National Historic Landmarks and comparable other historic sites designated by the U.S. government in the U.S. state of New York. The United States National Historic Landmark (NHL) program operates under the auspices of the Nat ...
*
References
Further reading
''Men and the Times of the Revolution; or Memoirs of Elkanah Watson, 1777-1842'' edited by Winslow C. (Cossoul) Watson, New York: Dana and Co, 1856, full text online at Internet Archive.
External links
* '' 'A Neat Plain Modern Stile:' Philip Hooker and His Contemporaries: 1796-1836'',
University of Massachusetts Press
The University of Massachusetts Press is a university press that is part of the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The press was founded in 1963, publishing scholarly books and non-fiction. The press imprint is overseen by an interdisciplinar ...
(catalogue of a history and art exhibition). Mary Raddant Tomlin, ed. (Excerpt a
Google books version accessed August 2007.)
New York State Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Elkanah, House)
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state)
National Historic Landmarks in New York (state)
Houses completed in 1828
Houses in Essex County, New York
National Register of Historic Places in Essex County, New York