National Register of Historic Places

Nehemiah Royce House

Wallingford, New Haven County, Connecticut
Listed
August 23, 1998
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
98000966

About this property

The Nehemiah Royce House, also known as the Washington Elm House, is a historic home located at 538 North Main Street in Wallingford, Connecticut. The saltbox home was constructed in 1672. George Washington visited the house twice, first in 1775 while on his way to take command of the Continental Army in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and again in 1789 when he gave an address to the townspeople in front of the house near the Elm. Nehemiah Royce was christened on May 30, 1637, at St. Michael's church in Stamford, Lincolnshire, England, the son of Robert Royce and Mary Jugkson (or Jackson). He married Hannah Morgan on November 20, 1660, and they had nine children together. Royce was a carpenter, joiner, and blacksmith by trade, and was one of Wallingford's original 38 proprietors authorized by the Connecticut General Assembly in 1667 to purchase land from the Quinnipiac tribe. On May 12, 1670, Wallingford was incorporated and about 126 people settled in the town. Royce was elected deputy representing Wallingford to the Court of the Connecticut Colony on May 11, 1693. He died on November 1, 1706. The Royce house is an example of American colonial saltbox architectural style. The Royce family occupied it for over 200 years; it was moved to its current location in 1924. The prominent figures associated with the 1930s–1940s rehabilitation of the Royce House form an impressive roster of leaders in the historic preservation movement in New England. The list includes Richard Henry Dana, William Sumner Appleton, Elmer Keith, J. Frederick Kelly, George Dudley Seymour, and Bertram Little. It was a museum for a time, and then it was used as a residence by Choate Rosemary Hall, until the school donated the house to the Wallingford Historic Preservation Trust in 1999. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. National Register of Historic Places listings in New Haven County, Connecticut Jones, Emma C. Brewster. The Brewster Genealogy, 1566-1907: a Record of the Descendants of William Brewster of the "Mayflower," ruling elder of the Pilgrim church which founded Plymouth Colony in 1620. New York: Grafton Press. 1908 Wallingford Historic Preservation Trust: Nehemiah Royce House

Location

538 N. Main St.
Wallingford, New Haven County, Connecticut
41.46641, -72.81276

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Simpson, Samuel, House
Industrial
0.6 mi
Wallingford Railroad Station
Industrial
0.9 mi
Wallingford Center Historic District
Listed
0.9 mi
Center Street Cemetery
Listed
0.9 mi
Johnson, Franklin, House
Industrial
1.1 mi

Nearby Battles

Raid on New Haven (Connecticut)
1779Revolutionary War
12.5 mi

Questions about this property

When was Nehemiah Royce House listed on the National Register?

Nehemiah Royce House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 23, 1998.

What type of historic resource is Nehemiah Royce House?

Nehemiah Royce House is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Nehemiah Royce House?

The period of significance for Nehemiah Royce House is recorded as the industrial era.

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