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Main Street (Big Hill 1)
Virtual Walking Tour
The Corner Store
The Corner Store sits literally atop a small creek—the
Town Branch—and occupies a strategic location at the
intersection of Waterford's main streets. The present building,
erected about 1900, replaced an earlier smaller store built
of log covered with weatherboard. Note the unusual shape
of the building to fit it onto the triangular site. The Waterford
Foundation renovated the Corner Store in the early 1990s
for use as office space. |
William James House
This parcel of land belonged with that of the house next
door as well as the Corner Store property for many years.
Storekeeper William James (1828-1908) bought the property
in 1856 and was probably responsible for the construction
of this house, which is typical of mid-19th century frame
construction. In the 1960s the owners replaced an earlier
front porch with the present one. |
John McGeath House
John McGeath (c.1756-1822), a veteran of the Revolutionary
War, probably built this house between 1816 and 1820. It
passed through a series of owners until the Chamberlin family
bought it and renovated it this century. This log house is
unusual in its construction. Although the west wall sits
on a stone foundation, the remainder of the foundation is
brick. Also uncommon is the lack of any notching to secure
the logs.
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Asa Moore House
The brick portion of this house was built before 1803, when
Asa Moore insured it for $660. Moore rented out this house,
then sold it to Thomas Lacey, a joiner, in 1810. The house
had a series of owners and deteriorated over time. A fire
damaged the downhill side of the house and that brick wall
was replaced with a frame one, now covered with stucco. The
frame addition on the uphill side, clad in German siding,
was added around the turn of the century. Notice the precision
of the mortar joints bonding the bricks; few houses in the
village, if any, can the match the caliber of this mortar.
Although small, this dwelling is of very high quality construction. |
The Jail
On Mahlon Janney's death in 1812, his executors sold the
small "Town Triangle" between Main and Water Streets
to the Trustees of Waterford for one dollar " . . .
with a desire to benefit the town of Waterford. To build
a Market House, Jail or any other public Building, forever
for the benefit of the said town of Waterford." This
sturdy stone jail with its pyramidal roof attests to the
flexibility of this type of structure. From the colonial
period through the 19th-century numerous outbuildings were
built following this simple formula. The jail housed many
an inebriate and petty thief from its construction through
the end (1936) of Waterford's incorporation as a town. |
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