The Noah Webster House is a
historic house museum
A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a ...
located at 227 South Main Street,
West Hartford, Connecticut
West Hartford is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, west of downtown Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. The population was 64,083 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census.
The town's popular downtown area is colloquially ...
. It was the boyhood home of American lexicographer
Noah Webster
Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible ( Book of Genesis, chapters 5 ...
(Junior, 1758–1853), and was declared 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 1962.
[ and ]
Description and history
The main portion of the Webster House is a -story wood-frame structure, three bays wide, with a large central chimney and center entrance. The most recent architectural survey (2020) demonstrates evidence inside the main fireplace of the hand of Daniel Webster (either the father of Noah Webster Sr, or the grandfather) as the person who built the house, and who lived across the road. His name is evident, signed with a finger in the yet-to-harden masonry. This would place the construction of the house earlier than previously believed, in the period of 1715–1720. As part of a farm, and is a typical frame residence of that era. A single-story brick addition was added to the house at an early date, probably to house a kitchen, and a wood-frame ell was also eventually added to the rear. A modern museum addition, roughly in the shape of a barn, was added in the 1970s after the property was rehabilitated and prepared for use as a museum.
In 1758 the house was the birthplace of
Noah Webster
Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible ( Book of Genesis, chapters 5 ...
. His father mortgaged the farm, including this farmhouse, for Noah to attend
Yale College
Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...
. Webster returned to the house after graduation, and was engaged as a teacher at local schools. His interest in
lexicography
Lexicography is the study of lexicons, and is divided into two separate academic disciplines. It is the art of compiling dictionaries.
* Practical lexicography is the art or craft of compiling, writing and editing dictionaries.
* Theoreti ...
prompted a series of publications, beginning with a spelling book in 1783 and culminating in the publication in 1828 of his ''
Dictionary of the American Language'', which sold millions of copies during his lifetime, and laid down basic principles for dictionaries and spelling books that are still used today.
The house was continuously occupied as a private residence until 1962, when it was given to the town. In 1966 it opened as a museum. It currently contains several items with Webster associations, including early editions of the ''Dictionary of the American Language'' and ''Blue-backed Spellers'', as well as china, glassware, a desk, and two clocks that Webster owned as an adult.
The house also serves as the headquarters of the West Hartford Historical Society.
See also
*
List of National Historic Landmarks in Connecticut
This article describes National Historic Landmarks in the United States state of Connecticut. These include the most highly recognized historic sites in Connecticut that are officially designated and/or funded and operated by the U.S. Federal Go ...
*
References
External links
Noah Webster House- official site
Image:Noah Webster House (West Hartford, CT) - side facade.jpg
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Houses in West Hartford, Connecticut
National Historic Landmarks in Connecticut
Houses completed in 1758
Historic house museums in Connecticut
Museums in Hartford County, Connecticut
Webster, Noah
Webster, Noah
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut
Historical society museums in Connecticut
National Register of Historic Places in Hartford County, Connecticut
Webster, Noah
Webster, Noah House