The Old Riverton Inn is a historic hotel and tavern at 436 East River Road in the
Riverton village of
Barkhamsted, Connecticut
Barkhamsted ( ) is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. It contains seven villages: West Hill, Mallory, Barkhamsted Center, Center Hill, Washington Hill, Pleasant Valley, and Riverton. The population was 3,647 at the 2020 ce ...
. Built in 1811, it has been in continuous operation as a traveler's accommodation since then. It 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 v ...
in 1992.
Description and history
The Old Riverton Inn occupies a prominent position on the east side of the village of Riverton, standing on the east side of East River Road opposite the bridge across the East Branch
Farmington River
The Farmington River is a river, U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 in length along its main stem, located in northwest Connecticut with major tributaries ex ...
, the only bridge spanning that river in the immediate vicinity. It is a 2-1/2 story gable-roof wood frame structure, set on a brick foundation exposed on the western (street) side due to the sloping lot, giving it a three-story appearance. The street facade is five bays wide, with the main entrance originally located in the center bay. Due to road widening, the building's 19th-century porch was lost, and the entrance (its original architectural surround preserved) was relocated to the south side. The main facade now has a three-part window topped by a broken pediment in the door's location, and a wide bay window in the basement level.
[ and ]
The inn was built about 1811, probably by Jesse Ives, to capitalize on traffic in the area. The bridge across the river was built in 1790, and was the only crossing for miles in either direction. The north-south road was a major route between
New Hartford and
, and the western road led to
Winsted. The village of Riverton also began to assume its own economic importance soon afterward, with the establishment in 1818 of the chair-making factory of
Lambert Hitchcock, some of whose buildings survive across the river. The inn survived the village's economic decline after it failed to secure a railroad connection, and has been operated for as a traveler accommodation for all but a twelve-year period in the early 20th century, when it housed migrant workers.
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See also
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References
External links
Old Riverton Inn web site
{{National Register of Historic Places
Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut
National Register of Historic Places in Litchfield County, Connecticut
Federal architecture in Connecticut
Buildings and structures completed in 1811
Buildings and structures in Litchfield County, Connecticut
Barkhamsted, Connecticut
Historic district contributing properties in Connecticut