Woodbury, the next town on our Journey, was settled in 1672 by a congregation that left Stratfrord under Rev. Zechariah Walker, as the result of a division in the church. Originally known as Pomperoug, it was recognized as a town in 1674, and given the descriptive name Woodbury. The settlement served as an outpost for the Colony in the Indian wars.
Woodbury consists of the Pomperaug River valley and its branches, surrounded by rugged hills. These hills are of trap rock, like those in the Central Lowland; though now isolated, the lava flows probably were once continuous, and connected with the similar outcrops in New York and New Jersey. Woodbury has an interesting village street, with ancestral homes and a considerable summer colony.
Soon after crossing the line from Bethlehem on R. 61, a 1/2 mile walk east from a tea house brings us to the attractive * Nonnewaug Falls. The brook drops 100 feet in three cascades, with a broad basin under each, surrounded by high cliffs, virgin hemlock and large oaks. A short distance below the falls is a bronze tablet to Chief Nonnewaug, who is said to be buried here. Joining U. S. 6 and passing through Minortown, with some old houses along the way, East Meadow Brook Falls lies 1/3 mile to the west, about 3 miles beyond the junction. In North Woodbury, we have the first of the three fine Colonial churches, erected in 1814; the interior woodwork is worth studying. From this point, R. 47 runs northwest to Washington, with good scenery after Hotchkissville, a former manufacturing center, where there was a large shear and knife factory. About 1 1/2 miles north of Hotchkissville, on the west side of the road, is the Willis Lambert House, built about 200 years ago, a sample of the Colonial types to be found on many of the country roads in Woodbury.
On the west side of the street, as we enter Woodbury village from the north, is the First Congregational Church, (1 on Chart XXV) organized in 1670, the oldest in Litchfield county, from which churches were set off in six neighboring towns. The present building dates from 1817. Farther down the street stands St. Paul's Episcopal Church (2) an interesting Colonial building, erected in 1785. In the old Burial Ground (3) the tall granite shaft of the Fathers' Monument commemorates the first three pastors of the First Congregational Church, whose united ministry covered a period of 143 years. Near this monument rest the ancestors of Pres. U. S. Grant and Gen. Wm. T. Sherman. In the Marshall House (4) on the same side of the street, the roof curves upward to cover a 2-story porch with Tuscan columns; the oldest portion is the wing, which probably goes back to 1771.
Turning west on Hollow Rd., we pass on the right the *Jabez Bacon House (5) built about 1762. It is a large gambrel-roof mansion, with central chimney and a 6-inch overhang in both stories. Jabez Bacon was the great merchant in this section, and influential even in the New York market; New Haven merchants sometimes came here to buy goods. He owned ships and warehouses at Derby, kept slaves, profiteered more or less during the Revolution, and left an estate of over $500,000. After Bacon's death in 1806, the house was owned by Daniel Curtiss, one of the first manufacturers of so-called German silver, which he made in the Hollow and distributed through peddlers. He sold this business to Waterbury parties in 1840, and began making woolen and silk goods. Next door is the Jabez Bacon Store (6) built about 1750 and since remodeled.
The prize of Woodbury is the **Glebe House (7) on the west side of Hollow Rd., maintained as a memorial to the beginning of an independent Episcopal Church in America. The house was built about 1750 and later enlarged; it has a central chimney, with gambrel roof an lean-to. It is open to visitors, and the interior arrangements are those of a typical central chimney house. The building was occupied as a parsonage by Rev. John Rutgers Marshall, minister of the Episcopal Church, who had studied under Rev. Joseph Bellamy in Bethlehem, and later came under the influence of Rev. Samuel Johnson, whom we met in Stratford. Marshall settled in Woodbury as a missionary in 1771, and during the Revolution was under suspician (sic), like others outside the Congregational order, probably being confined at times to his home lot by the authorities. In March, 1783, after the preliminary Treaty of peace and independence was signed, a secret meeting was held in the Glebe House, attended by 10 out of 14 Episcopal clergy in Connecticut. Samuel Seabury (see under Ledyard) was selected for bishop of the Episcopal Church in the U. S., and was consecrated the next year at Aberdeen, Scotland.
Turning off southeast at the Soldiers' Monument (8) on the site of the second church building, we pass on the left the charming landmark usually known as the *Dr. Webb House (9) built originally in 1721, with a gambrel roof at an unusually low pitch, giving one of the most beautiful roof lines in Connecticut. Farther east is *Orenaug Park (10) a striking cluster of trap rock cliffs, with drives and a steel tower, from which six surrounding towns can be seen. On the east side of the Park is a natural stone pulpit, known as Bethel Rock, where, according to tradition, the first religious services were held.
Returning to the Monument (8) and going south along the street. we see King Solomon's Temple (11) to the left, on a 50-foot bluff of trap rock. This was one of the earliest Masonic lodge buildings in America, built in the Greek Revival style in 1839. The lodge was established in 1765. On the west side of the main street is a large boulder and tablet in honor of Chief Pomperaug (12) from whom the lands in this region were purchased; he was buried at this spot in 1650. Farther south is the Curtis House (13) of 3 1/2 stories, built originally in 1754 and used as an inn. Pompernug Falls lie 3/4 mile southwest by Pomperaug Ave., which passes through a rocky gorge, beautified by rare specimens of laurel.
R. 14, which turns east to Waterbury, makes an attractive drive, with a remarkable view of the valley as we climb the hill. To the south of the highway, just before the ascent of the new Sherman Hill Rd., we find the old *Sherman Homestead. It was built in 1672, at the time of the first settlement, by the ancestors of Gen. Wm. Tecumseh Sherman. The house is a typical salt-box, and remarkably well preserved. There is a rather unique front door. The chimney is 12 x 14 feet, and the long kitchen measures 22 feet. In front of the house are the two maples, always planted by the Colonial groom and bride.
A mile north of R. 14 is Great Hill, with a fine view of the surrounding country, including Lake Quassapaog. just before reaching the Middlebury town line, we cross a beautiful wooded ravine.