Prudence Crandall, portrait by Francis Alexander

The Prudence Crandall Museum 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 ...

, sometimes called the Elisha Payne House for its previous owner. It is located on the southwest corner of the junction of Connecticut Routes 14 and 169, on the

Canterbury, Connecticut Canterbury is a town in Windham County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 5,045 at the 2020 census. History The area was settled by English colonists in the 1680s as ''Peagscomsuck''. It consisted mainly of land north of Norwich, so ...

village green A village green is a commons, common open area within a village or other settlement. Historically, a village green was common pasture, grassland with a pond for watering cattle and other stock, often at the edge of a rural settlement, used for ...

. It is designated a U.S.

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 ...

as Prudence Crandall House.

The Canterbury Female Boarding School

The house is notable for having been the site of

Prudence Crandall Prudence Crandall (September 3, 1803 – January 27, 1890) was an American schoolteacher and activist. She ran the first school for black girls ("young Ladies and little Misses of color") in the United States, located in Canterbury, Connecticut. ...

's Canterbury Female Boarding School. The house was empty and for sale in 1831, and Crandall purchased the house for a $500 down payment plus a $1500 mortgage. The school operated from 1831 to 1833 for white students, but the admission of one black student, by all reports highly qualified, caused parents of the white students to withdraw their daughters, threatening the school's survival. Crandall closed the school and reopened it in 1833 for

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

students, whom she called "young Ladies and little Misses of color". The school was vigorously opposed by the residents of Canterbury, who feared an African-American migration. When their attempts to close it through legal methods were not immediately successful, they resorted to violence, forcing Crandall to close the school in 1834 out of concern for the students' safety. Crandall left Connecticut, never to return. For her vision and brave actions at this school, Prudence Crandall is Connecticut's official state

heroine A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''hero' ...

. The house was designated a

in 1991.

Construction and architecture

Elisha Payne House, Canterbury (Windham County, Connecticut)

Elisha Payne House, Staircase and hallway, Canterbury (Windham County, Connecticut)

The house was built in 1805, and "is a notable example of what has been termed the 'Canterbury type' because of several similar examples in the vicinity. It shows the peculiar roof form of

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

hip In vertebrate anatomy, hip (or "coxa"Latin ''coxa'' was used by Celsus in the sense "hip", but by Pliny the Elder in the sense "hip bone" (Diab, p 77) in medical terminology) refers to either an anatomical region or a joint. The hip region is ...

with twin chimneys, a triangular

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

at the eaves above a projecting

pavilion In architecture, ''pavilion'' has several meanings: * It may be a subsidiary building that is either positioned separately or as an attachment to a main building. Often it is associated with pleasure. In palaces and traditional mansions of Asia ...

at center of the facade, which carries a

Palladian window Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...

lighting the stair hall at second floor level and an elaborate entrance doorway." Elisha Payne House, Detail of front entrance, Canterbury (Windham County, Connecticut)

Elisha Payne House, Detail of front entrance, Canterbury (Windham County, Connecticut)

The main cornice around the entire house includes

modillion A modillion is an ornate bracket, more horizontal in shape and less imposing than a corbel. They are often seen underneath a cornice which it helps to support. Modillions are more elaborate than dentils (literally translated as small teeth). All ...

blocks just above a

Greek fret __NOTOC__ A meander or meandros ( el, Μαίανδρος) is a decorative border constructed from a continuous line, shaped into a repeated motif. Among some Italians, these patterns are known as "Greek Lines". Such a design also may be called ...

. The two front corners of the house sport "fluted

pilasters In classical architecture, a pilaster is an architectural element used to give the appearance of a supporting column and to articulate an extent of wall, with only an ornamental function. It consists of a flat surface raised from the main wall ...

on high bases", which "also flank the central pavilion, framing also in miniature the elements of the Palladian window, which exhibits keystone arches and Gothic arch

muntins A muntin (US), muntin bar, glazing bar (UK), or sash bar is a strip of wood or metal separating and holding panes of glass in a window. Muntins can be found in doors, windows, and furniture, typically in Western styles of architecture. Muntins ...

in the large section." The Gothic pattern is "repeated in the

lunette A lunette (French ''lunette'', "little moon") is a half-moon shaped architectural space, variously filled with sculpture, painted, glazed, filled with recessed masonry, or void. A lunette may also be segmental, and the arch may be an arc take ...

occupying the tympanum of the roof-line pediment above, which also has modillions and Greek fret under the

raking cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...

." The Palladian window is the combination window on the 2nd story, including a central large window with over-window plus two narrow side windows, separated by pilasters. The foundation is of dressed stone blocks. Inside, the ornamental

fireplace mantel The fireplace mantel or mantelpiece, also known as a chimneypiece, originated in medieval times as a hood that projected over a fire grate to catch the smoke. The term has evolved to include the decorative framework around the fireplace, and ca ...

is original, as is the stairway and almost all moldings and other interior elements.

Preservation

Elisha Payne House, Mantel, Canterbury (Windham County, Connecticut)

The house was surveyed in 1940 by the

Historic American Buildings Survey Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...

, which termed it the "Elisha Payne House" and also the "Prudence Crandall School for Negro Girls", a name the school never had when open. 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 1970. The house was studied in depth in 1981. The study "concluded that there had been only minor changes to the house since the occupancy of Prudence Crandall and that approximately 95% of the structure is unaltered." The building was declared a

in 1991. and It is located within the

Canterbury Center Historic District The Canterbury Center Historic District is a historic district (United States), historic district in Canterbury, Connecticut. The district is centered on the town green (Canterbury Green), located at the junction of Route 169 (Connecticut), Rout ...

, another listing on the

. The house is a museum and includes period rooms, changing exhibits, a small research library (available for in-house study) and a gift shop.

References

External links

Prudence Crandall Museum
*

{{National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut African-American history of Connecticut Crandall, Prudence Canterbury, Connecticut Historic American Buildings Survey in Connecticut Historic house museums in Connecticut Houses completed in 1805 Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut Houses in Windham County, Connecticut Museums in Windham County, Connecticut National Historic Landmarks in Connecticut Women's museums in Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in Windham County, Connecticut 1805 establishments in Connecticut Historic district contributing properties in Connecticut Tourist attractions in Windham County, Connecticut Schools in Windham County, Connecticut Defunct schools in Connecticut Prudence Crandall

The Canterbury Female Boarding School

Construction and architecture

Preservation

See also

References

External links