Joseph Webb House

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The Joseph Webb House at the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum.
Photo courtesy of the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum.

Joseph Webb House, Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum

211 Main Street

Wethersfield, CT

Website:  Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum

  

The Treasure:  Dating back to 1752, the Joseph Webb House served as George Washington’s headquarters at a critical moment in the spring of 1781.

Accessibility:  Open every day except Tuesdays from May 1 through October 31. Variable hours during other months. Check the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum website for seasonal hour schedules.

Background:  The Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum maintains and interprets four 18th century houses: the Silas Deane House, the Isaac Stevens House, the Buttolph Williams House, and—our focus—the Joseph Webb House. Located in a quaint historic town just a little south of Hartford, the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum benefits from the distinctive colonial appearance and atmosphere of Wethersfield’s Historic District. It’s like stepping back in time.

An engraving by John Barber showing the Webb House
in 1838.  Image courtesy of the
Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum.

In 1752, Joseph Webb hired Judah Wright to build a three-and-a-half-story house and shop with a large gambrel roof. The tall roof added extra space for the goods sold by the young merchant—and likely served as sleeping quarters for his slaves, as well. After Webb’s death in 1761, the house was inherited by his son, also named Joseph.

Under the care of Joseph Webb, Jr. and his wife Abigail, the house came to be informally known as “Hospitality Hall.” On one particularly important instance, General George Washington spent five days there in May 1781. During that time, Washington and the Comte de Rochambeau planned a joint military campaign that resulted in the victorious siege at Yorktown that ended the American Revolution.

Unfortunately money ran low for the Webb family in the years following the Revolutionary War, forcing them to sell the property in 1790. The house was eventually purchased by Judge Martin Welles, remaining in the Welles family for three generations until the death of Judge Welles’ grandson in 1913. After quickly passing through several hands, the Joseph Webb House was sold to the Colonial Dames of Connecticut in 1919 for preservation as a house museum.

Paint being removed from the front facade of the Webb House while
carpenters work on the north facade.
Photo courtesy of the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum.

Notes from the Editor:  Determining the original color scheme of a historic house can be tricky. Despite the sophistication of modern paint analyses, traces of the original colors can be tantalizingly elusive. Although it would be wonderful to know the exterior colors of the Webb House at the time of its construction or when George Washington visited, the earliest clues date back only to the 1820s. For current interpretive purposes, the exterior is painted a grey-tan shade to match its appearance circa 1821.

But sometimes you get a lucky break… During the preparation of a 2005 Historic Structures Report, conservator Brian Powell found evidence concerning the original look of the room now known as the Washington bed chamber. Historic paint expert Marylou Davis was retained during the 2009-2010 restoration of the bed chamber. Based on the newly-discovered findings, Davis worked to recreate the original appearance of the room. She was able to replicate about half of the room’s original faux cedar wood graining, returning the room to the original striking and handsome appearance that Washington may well have enjoyed.

Interestingly, Marylou Davis noted similarities between the graining in the Washington bed chamber and the graining used in the Wetmore Parlor at the nearby Wadsworth Atheneum. Since both buildings date back to the mid-18th century, there is a good chance that the same craftsman may have worked at both important historic sites.

The Washington bed chamber at the Joseph Webb House.
Photo courtesy of the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum.

View of the recreated faux cedar wood graining on the wall of the
Washington bed chamber at the Joseph Webb House.
Photo courtesy of the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum.

Other Recommended Sites:  Mentioned in the paragraph above, the Wadsworth Atheneum (Hartford, CT) is both an important historic site and a remarkable collection of American art. The Wadsworth Atheneum received its own Save America’s Treasures grant in 2002.

The Joseph Webb House in the middle, with the Silas Deane House to
the left and the Isaac Stevens House to the right.
Photo courtesy of the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum.

Guest author for this entry:  Terry Price

Tour America's History Itinerary

Friday’s destination:  John Rogers Studio and Museum

© 2012 Lee and Terry Price