The Putnam Farm is a historic farm on Spaulding Road in

Brooklyn, Connecticut Brooklyn is a town in Windham County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 8,450 at the 2020 census. The town center village is listed by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place. The district of East Brooklyn is listed ...

. The property, now just of agricultural land with a house (built about 1750) on it, was the centerpiece of a vast landholding in the mid-18th century by Major General

Israel Putnam Israel Putnam (January 7, 1718 – May 29, 1790), popularly known as "Old Put", was an American military officer and landowner who fought with distinction at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). He als ...

, a major colonial-era military figure who saw action in both the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

and in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. The property 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 1982.

Description and history

The Putnam Farm is located in a rural area of northern Brooklyn, on the north side of Spaulding Road east of

Connecticut Route 169 Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

. The house is set among rolling fields, facing roughly south toward the road, which is lined with stone walls. The house is large in size but modest in styling, stories in height, with a gabled roof and clapboarded exterior. Its main facade is eight bays across, with two entrances and asymmetrically placed window bays. Architecturally, it is composed of two separate structures set about apart, the area in between filled in by walls and flooring. The exterior and interior both have modest examples of Federal period woodwork, including fireplace mantels. Israel Putnam, a native of

Danvers, Massachusetts Danvers is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the Danvers River near the northeastern coast of Massachusetts. The suburb is a fairly short ride from Boston and is also in close proximity to the renowned beaches of Glo ...

, purchased of land in what was then part of

Pomfret Pomfrets are perciform fishes belonging to the family Bramidae. The family currently includes 20 species across seven genera. Several species are important food sources for humans, especially ''Brama brama'' in South Asia. The earlier form of t ...

from Massachusetts Governor

Jonathan Belcher Jonathan Belcher (8 January 1681/8231 August 1757) was a merchant, politician, and slave trader from colonial Massachusetts who served as both governor of Massachusetts Bay and governor of New Hampshire from 1730 to 1741 and governor of New J ...

in 1739. He was judged one of the area's successful farmers, raising cattle and sheep. The oldest portion of the present house was built by Putnam about 1750, in order to accommodate his growing family. Putnam served with distinction in the colonial militia during the

, and achieved broad recognition throughout the British colonies for his exploits. In 1767 he moved into Brooklyn village, where he operated a tavern and engaged in politics, leaving operation of the farm to his son. Putnam would achieve further renown at the

Battle of Bunker Hill The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peripherally involved in ...

in the

. Putnam's son sold the farm in 1795 to a neighbor. The house Putnam built was doubled in size in the early 19th century, at which time it was also given modest Federal styling. In 1839 it was purchased by Joshua Collins, whose family owned it for over 100 years. The Collinses sold off most of the farmland after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, leaving the house standing on about .Hubbard, Robert Ernest. ''Major General Israel Putnam: Hero of the American Revolution,'' p. 12-14, McFarland & Company, Inc., Jefferson, North Carolina, 2017. .

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Farms on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut Houses completed in 1750 Buildings and structures in Windham County, Connecticut Brooklyn, Connecticut Houses in Windham County, Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in Windham County, Connecticut

Description and history

See also

References