Set a distance from the west side of Waterville Road, "Meadow View" sits on a slightlyelevated site surrounded by a large, open lawn trimmed with both shade and fruit trees.The Farmington Country Club golf course borders the lot to the north and west. TheFarmington River lies to the west. The yard is enhanced by a small pond and brook.The surrounding neighborhood contains similar turn-of-the-century dwellings, manyof which were erected by Noah Wallace.

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HISTORIC RESOURCES INVENTORYBUILDING AND STRUCTURESHI~TI; NEW S 77

FOR OFFICE USE ONL y

STATE OF CONNECTICUTCONNECTICUT HISTORICAL COMMISSION

59 SOUTH PROSPECT STREET. HARTFORD. CONNECTICUT 06106(203) 566·3005

Town No ISite No 384UT~ • I I , I : : I : I ! I :QUAD: I

,. BUILDINGNAME(Commoo]

DISTRICT

Os DNR III' NR SPECIFVo Actual 0 Pot_tial

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I "Meadow View"2 TOWNCITV I<..uUNV

~ Farmington Hartfordt= hJr-nIt''llH.I'1!t.'~t."""IA,"'I:l'r'NDr.··iJNTTI:lUMIJlBI~ERI"':I:-:&-=lId:r:or="'T••, ~,oc:-:&~,:r:i":-=l1":'"'__ ..L L. _

~ 33 Waterville Roadu. h.,..,O"'W"'N:;"iE.-;R;;;/r<'S.-I--------------------------------------------------t= M 0 (Xlz oore , John Warner, Jr. and Hamilton, Virginia Public 1.::.1 PrivOf.

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. TO PUBLIC; I ~Y.s DNa OY.s{i)NoS 'LE OF 0"' t. U' <..V".. ~U ... IV

Colonial Revival ca. 1900• MATl!:RIALlSl(/OG,('a,IP UH 01 ,UC'&,iollwhIP. &pp,o",ia'~'o Clapboard 0 Asb.stos Siding 0 Brick OOth.r(Specify' _

[!) Woad Shingle D Asphalt Siding o Fi.ldstan.

o Board & Botten o Stucca 6t) Cobbleston. foundationOAluminum 0 Concrete

. Siding Type: O Cut stoneType:

; 9 STRUCTURA\.SY$':'EM

[:!J W_d frame 0 Post and beam liJ balloono Othe, r Specilyl _

.o load bearing mas_,)' .0 Structural i,on 0' steellOR 00 F f T..,.~I

(i] Goble 0 Flat D Mansard o Monitor D ;awtooth

D Gambrel o Shed OHiP o Round DOthe,ISp~c.ly, _zoI-CLa:U'"wo

[] Wood Shingle DRollAsphalt D Tin D Slate

G2Asphalt shingle 0 Built up 0 Tile DOtherf S~c"yl

II NUM8EROF srORIEiIo APPROXIMATEOIMEN~IONS

42 X 28; 25 X 18; 20 X 24; 35 X 16; 20 X 24Il L UNU luN. Sit". IU", •o Excellent ~ Good 0 Fair

, ,.~ .\ ,.. , "" Jo Deteriorated I0 Excellent ~ Good o Fai, o Deteriorated13 INTEGRITv .1. .••. llfll'I' I WHEN'

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~ 8arn ~ Shed [29 Garage

: A URES

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hou se Shop Ga,den'S SU1H10UNO'NCL£NVIRONMENT

~ Open land 0 ~:c:t G9 Residenllol o Scattered buildings VI sible f,om s,tIP

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17 OTHER NOTABLE FEATURES OF BUILDING OR SITE I""""'" "lid .. , ...... " .. "

This house displays little in the way of architectural embellishments. The facade,which faces north away from the road, is capped by a ridge-to-street gable roof with acentral gable-roofed dormer. The building once exhibited a full-length, Colonial Revival-style porch, which has since been removed. The off-center entry door is flanked by multi-paned sidelights. The gable ends feature large overhanging eaves and numerous additionsextend from the rear elevation. One interesting feature is the underground tunnel whichextends from the main house to a nearby outbuilding.

I HI I U

Wealthy land developer, Noah Wallace built "Meadow View" around 1900 as an income-producing property. Theodore Peck of Waterbury was hired as the architect and theParsons Brothers of Unionville were contracted as the builders. Wallace erected a number ofsimilar residences in the area at the same time (see # 9, 11, and 15 Waterville Road).Early occupants of this house included Mrs. C.L. Munn and later Archibald G~ McIlwaineand his family. In 1908 Harry Clinton Ney purchased the house (FLR 77:209). Born inWethersfield, Ney (1869-1947) was the son of John M. and Sarah (Beckwith) Ney. Hisfather was a native of France and president of the J.M. Ney Company, dealers in preciousmetals. The firm, which was located on Elm Stn=et in Hartford, specialized in gold. Harry,who was an executive in his father's firm, ma~ried Florine Schenherr (1883-1942) in 1906.Upon Mr. Ney's death in 1947, the house was sold to H. Warren and Elizabeth Lawrence(FLR 102:114). The land has passed through a number of owners sin~"e 1956, including theFarmington Country Club.

Architecturally similar to other dwellings erected along Waterville Road, ''Meadow View"combines the broad massing of the Shingle style and classical detail of the ColonialRevival ~tyle •..Historically the house derives importance for its ties with Noah Wallaceand later the Harry Ney family.

Farmington Land Records; Farmington Probate Records; Farmington Vital Records; Farmington~ Cemetery Inscriptions, W.P.A., 1934; Avon Cemetery Inscriptions, W.P.A., 1934; 1853 E.:1.~ Woodford Map; 1855 E.~1. Woodford Map; 1869 Baker and Tilden Map; 1878 a.ll. Bailey & Co. ~lall.::J~ Prentice, Dudley. History of Farmington Houses. 9 vols. N.p., 1974. Brandegee, Arthur.

Farmin ton, Connecticut, The Villa e of Beautiful Homes. Farmington: Author, 1906.

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HOTOGRAPHER

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Elizabeth R. Hart 4/86

27 W~shington Street, Middletown, CTUB U

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L Io HIghwaYI o Yandalilm o Developer I

o Renewal o Deteriorotion o Zonin'tl o Explanationo Private

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�, ACME 56~".'pIWNER'S NAME IT II '''PH'T\Tr'H' P 1MII PPk'1\T \ +:0 FArm nRv1C1 Hal 1 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

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,DDRESS:~~Watervi 11 p. 'Rn,qi!

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IEFERENCES: "Farming: ton. Conn •• lP061l D.61 "Meadowviewn

OWNERI AS OF J

1951- 196TO"°"'33 ""~N~\'- 'Ll117116110 1;°CLAYlRET\CE. H. WARRE"J ) FAILE, D.H.--

is (3 5 - 133 Waterville Road

This house is pictured on page 61 of the FarmingtonBook as "Meadowview, property of Noah Hallace, Residence ofMrs. C. L. Munn".

On page 6 of the Farmington Book is pictured a view"Site of old Indian fort, Fort Lot", and that photo may havebeen taken from this house, which had an excellent view to thenorth over the golf course. Fort Lot is described on page 60of the Farmington Book as follows;.

I1In the year 1711 and perhaps earlier, a certain pieceof land was known in the record as Fort Lot, and it retained thename until it was absorbed into the grounQs of the country clubgolf course. It is the part bounded west by the bed of the oldcanal and north by land recently of Mr. Henry C. Rice. Here.'VTereformerly ploughed up in great numbers two kinds of Indianarrowheads, the broad black kind used by the Tunxis Indians, anda lesser number of a kind narrower, more pointed, and of alighter color. These latter we were told were the weapons of ahostile tribe left here after a great battle".

This house now known as 33 Waterville Road was builtin 1901 for Noah Wallace, probably as a speculative venture, ashe himself never lived here.

Mrs. Munn is remembered as having been a widow fromNew York with about three or four teenage children, and with nospecial interest in Farmington, who did not live here very long.

Archibald G. McIlwaine and his f~mily lived here for atime following Mrs. Munn, having lived for a year or so in theWhittlesey house (now Humphrey) at 63 Main Street. Their daughterElsie Graham McIlwaine was born in that house, said to have beenthe first in Farmington to have had a black "Hammy". Hr. Hcl1wainewas from Petersburg, Virginia, and it waa a coincidence that on thecapitol grounds, almost across from his Hartford office, he foundthe. "Petersburg Express", an old mortar which had shelled his homewhen he 'VTaS'. a child. Nrs. NcIlwaine was the former Elsie Bliss Roseof Short Hills, New Jersey.

The McIlwaines, Hr. McIlwaine being president of theOrient Insurance Company and later on the General Hanager ofLondon and Lancashire Insurance Company, moved- to Hartford, livingon Prospect Avenue, almost opposite Oxford School. After her hus-band's death Mrs. McIlwaine lived many years on Lorraine Street.Her son David, born in Hartford, lived in Farmington on Old MountainRoad, in the house now occupied by the Gordons, later moved intoHartford. glsie Graham McIlwaine studied at Mis~ Porter'S' School,1921-1925, later married Howard Gibb of 49 High Street, and in 1945was President of the MPS Alumnae A~sociation.

July 20, 1973

1%"6-3,

3 (3 5 2

Harry C. Ney purchased from Noah Wallace in 1908, movinghere from 18 High Street. Harry Ney, born in 1869, was the son ofJohn H. Ney and Sarah Be ckwd t.h, John N. Ney being the head of theJ. M. Ney Company. That company was a dealer in preciQu~~ metals,especially gold, sOT:\etimescalled the "Gold Beaterstl, and situatedon Elm Street, Hartford. Another son of J. M. Ney, Paul Ney, pur-chased in 1912 the property on Town Farm Road, called the Hannonplace.

Harry Ney's wife, whom he married on December 5, 1906,WaS the former Florine Schenherr, daughter of Henry Schenherr.

This house was a "very elegant h'buse" at one time, andvery beautiful, with a rose-lined path all the way out to Water-ville Road, which is quite a distance.

Harry Ney gave to Dr. Maurice Root of West Hartford, a50n of Farmington, a huge roll-top, many-pigeonholed desk, wh Lchhe had salvaged from the old Hartford National Bartk building inthe 1930' s, wh Lch Dr. Root still uses and treasures immensely.

The Neys took young Duncan Rooker of Cedar Street onhunting and fishing trips with them, and perhaps helped make himthe great nature lover that he was, although he was undoubtedlyborn with some of that instinct in his nature.

Mrs. Ney died on February 3, 1942, and Harry Ney onJanuary 17, 1947. Whether or not they had children is not knownby the writer.

The Neys are said to have been descendants of MarshallNiche1 Ney of France, under Napoleon Bonaparte. Although thelineage of such a descendancy is not known by the writer, a few linesiare writtenJ, made up from short accounts of Harsha11 Ney in t~".osepa.rateencyclopedias.

The house was purchased from Mr. Ney's estate in 1948by H •.Warren Lawrence, who moved here with his family, from 92Main Street. In 1956 the house was eoid to David Hall Faile andthe Lawrenc~s built another home on Waterville Road~ living inWest Hartford until that new home was· completed in 1961.

David H. and Lucia L. Faile sold this house on Sep-tember 30, 1960, to Burges Smith.

On July 15, 1965, the Waterville Road Realty Companybecame the owner, a company believed to be closely linked withthe Farmington Country Club.

In 1970 and through 1972, according to phone and citydirectories, the occupant of thi~ house with its fantasticallylarge tree to the rear, has been Nancy Gustad", systems engineerfor IBM.

May 24, 1974

li'bLf ,

Marshall Michel Ney

Marshall Michel Ney was born at Saarlouis (now inPrussia) on January la, 1769, the son of a cooper, and hereceived only a rudimentary education. He entered the armyin 1787, rose from humble origins during the wars of the FrenchRevolution. He became a brigade general in 1796, obtained acommand on the Rhine in 1799, and won a victory at Elchingen onOctober 14, 1805, for which he was created Duke of Elchingen.His intrepid conduct and daring tactics, even when greatly out-numbered, earned him the accolade given him by Napoleon, "TheBravest of the Brave".

In may 1802 he was married to M~demoiselle Auguiewhom Josephinehadeh~,enfor him at Napoleon's request. He wasnamed Marshall of France after the establishment of the empire,and received the Grand Eagle of the Legion of Honour.

Marshall Ney commanded the rear guard in the retreatfrom Russia in 1812, and manage~ to keep up the morale of hissoldiers despite extreme hardships. After Napoleon's firstabdication he swore allegiance to Louis XVIII, who made him aPeer in 1814.

Upon Napoleon's escape from Elba, Marshall Ney wassent with a large detachment of troops to arrest him, but wasunable to resist the appeals of his old chief, and rallied toNapoleon's support instead, making possible the "100 Days"episode.

Defeated by Wellington at Quatre-Bras on June 16, 1815,he commanded the old guard at Waterloo June 18. He and the OldImperial Guard fought loyally to the end.

He was arrested on August 5, was tried and foundguilty of treason to Louis XVIII by the House of Peers. Shotto death in Luxembourg Gardens in December 1815, he met deathquietly and with perfect soldierly discipline.

Sources from which the above information was obtainedare Encyclopedia Brittanica 1953, Encyclopedia International,Grolier, editions of 1964 and 1972.

July 20, 1973

365-3