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THE ISAAC STEVENS HOUSE
Photos by Skip Broom

The Isaac Stevens House is more than a historical house with period furnishings; it is an early anecdote of what has come to be called the American Dream. Isaac Stevens was a shoemaker who worked his way up to affluence and built a house on the finest street in the town of Wethersfield.

The Stevens House is part of the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum complex in Wethersfield. “Despite the contrast in the wealth of the owners,” wrote Sara Emerson Rolles, “simplicity and good taste are evident in all three houses.”

Isaac Stevens built the house in 1789, prior to his marriage to Sarah Wright that same year. Period interiors offer visitors a look at middle-class life in the 1820s and 1830s, with many original family possessions on display. The house came down through the Stevens descendants for 170 years until it was acquired by the Connecticut Colonial Dames, who restored the house from 1959-1963 and opened it to the public.

Stevens House

The interiors of the house were recently redecorated with period wallpapers and borders. Wallpapers became available and affordable to middle class consumers beginning in the 1930s.

The second floor of the Stevens house is devoted to children. Among the exhibits is a restored bedroom with sleeping accommodations for five children.

A newly refurbished gallery features the Colonial Dames collection of toys, dolls and doll houses. Also new is an interactive education room devoted to hands-on activities related to child life and play in the 19th century.

The Editor wishes to thank the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum Complex, whose website is the source of much of the information above.

Stevens House