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
Year 169 ( CLXIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Senecio and Apollinaris (or, less frequently, year 922 ''Ab urbe co ...
, on the
Canterbury, Connecticut village green. 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'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. The house 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 1991.
Construction and architecture
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 ...
on
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 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."
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 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 is original, as is the stairway and almost all moldings and other interior elements.
Preservation
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 ]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 1991.[ and ]
It is located within the Canterbury Center Historic District, another listing 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 ...
. The house is a museum and includes period rooms, changing exhibits, a small research library (available for in-house study) and a gift shop.
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 ...
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Windham County, Connecticut
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