Allen, Ethan, House and Gun Shop
About this property
The Ethan Allen House and Gun Shop is an historic property at 37 Waterville Street in Grafton, Massachusetts. The property includes the home and business of armsmaker Ethan Allen. The gun shop was constructed in 1833, while the house was built in 1834–36. Allen, the inventor of the pepper-box revolver, began manufacturing guns in Grafton in 1832; his business was one of the earliest gunmakers in the region and an early part of Grafton's industrial development. Allen's home was a Greek Revival residence, an uncommon style in the area. The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. Ethan Allen (not to be confused with American Revolutionary War hero Ethan Allen), was a native of Bellingham, Massachusetts who came to Grafton in 1831, where he manufactured cutlery before entering the arms business. The land for the house and shop was acquired in partnership with his father in 1832, and purchased by him outright in 1837. When Allen began making guns, he dammed the brook near the shop site to provide water power to the facility. While working at this shop, Allen produced the first known example of an "underhammer" pistol, and the first self-cocking gun with a barrel that rotates when the trigger is pulled. His shop, in which he worked until moving to Norwich, Connecticut in 1842, is one of the only examples of an early 19th-century gunshop in the state.
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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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Questions about this property
When was Allen, Ethan, House and Gun Shop listed on the National Register?
Allen, Ethan, House and Gun Shop was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 11, 1995.
What type of historic resource is Allen, Ethan, House and Gun Shop?
Allen, Ethan, House and Gun Shop is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Allen, Ethan, House and Gun Shop?
The period of significance for Allen, Ethan, House and Gun Shop is recorded as the industrial era.
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Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Allen, Ethan, House and Gun Shop will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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