QUESTION #4 CAN YOU TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT THE HOUSE YOU LIVED IN AT TOPSMEAD?

Overview
Our house was built in 1934 as an extension on a long line of attached machine sheds and a 3 car garage (built in 1929) located near the barns at Topsmead. The dwelling was designed by Waterbury architect Fred Webster as a place for my father and his family to live because he was their chauffeur. He needed to be at Topsmead during the summer months when Miss Edith and the Burrell sisters were there. Since the house was intended to be strictly a summer home, it had no central heating system. If it got chilly, heat was provided by an oil stove in the kitchen and one in the upstairs hallway. There was also a fireplace in the living room. Mother cooked for us on a 24” propane gas stove also in the kitchen. There was an old-fashioned refrigerator that came from the Chase family home at 42 Church Street.  That house was emptied and sold after Miss Edith’s mother passed away.

Today you can see the long line of buildings near the barns. All the buildings are painted “Topsmead brown” – a color Miss Edith created. Our house is on the North end closest to the paved road from the parking lot. There is a porch on the front. Our house is now used by the DEEP State Forest employees; they use the kitchen as a lunchroom. The space is not open to the public. All our family’s belongings have been removed.

Layout of the Rooms
There were five rooms, two downstairs and three upstairs. Downstairs the front door opens to a stairway on the left and central hallway on the right that provides access to the kitchen on your right and beyond that what was the living room. At the end of the hallway there was a utility closet.

The staircase leads to the second floor where there were two bedrooms, one for my parents and one for my brother and me. There was a little niche at the top of the stairs for the oil stove if we needed a little heat. There was a bathroom on the left at the top of the stairs. Beyond the bathroom under the eaves was a space used as an additional bedroom and for storage. The bedroom furnishings came from the servant’s quarters at 42 Church Street.

Time Spent at Topsmead and Renovation
After 1947, we only spent summer vacations and an occasional weekend at Topsmead. That year, Mother opened a luncheonette in Waterbury. During that time, we all lived together in Waterbury, and dad commuted daily to Topsmead. Then in 1962, Miss Edith renovated the house because my mom closed her business and returned to Topsmead for the summer. The rooms were repainted, and wallpaper was hung. A new electric range and refrigerator were purchased for the kitchen and electric heat was installed except for the spare bedroom.

Lifetime Use
Miss Edith passed away in 1972 but her will directed that my parents had lifetime use of the house. It also established a trust fund to pay for the insurance, taxes and utilities. Mom and Dad spent summers there until 1995 when Mom’s health deteriorated and she went into a nursing home. Dad and I continued to go most weekends, and for my two-week summer vacations from work. Dad passed away in 1999 and Mom in 2001. I transferred the house to the state in June of that year. I emptied the house of the furnishing taking some for myself, and family members.

​The end of an era had arrived. It was one of the saddest times of my life. The place I had grown to love so much no longer would be available to me as it had been for my whole life up until then. I still remember Topsmead as it was: a beautiful, peaceful haven where family and friends could enjoy each other’s company amid the tranquility of the trees, stone walls and meadows that I had grown to love so well.