Selden Brewer House

The Federal and Greek Revival inspired Selden Brewer House possesses historical significance due to its attachment to one of East Hartford's largest and most prominent tobacco-growing families. Although the precise dates of construction are unknown, Selden Brewer (1811 - 1876) likely acquired the property in 1827 as a gift from his father, and construction on the house finished in 1833. The house stands today as the last home connected to the wealthy, influential Brewer family. The Brewers mainly gained their fortune by becoming one of the largest tobacco producers in an area that served as one of the region's and nation's most prolific tobacco-growing regions. However, their influence stretched from California to as far as South Africa. 

Native Americans successfully grew and harvested tobacco in the Connecticut Valley well before European settlers arrived in the 1630s. The introduction of broadleaf tobacco (mainly used for cigar production) occurred in 1833, which led to its extensive cultivation by the 1850s. By the Civil War, Hartford County stood as one of the nation's top cigar-tobacco producers, with East Hartford ranking as one of New England's largest tobacco-producing towns; the crop drove the town's economy until World War II. The Brewer plantation stood as one of the town's largest, having been managed by four generations of the Brewer family.

Selden's grandfather began purchasing land in the Hartford area during the 1750s, which he passed on to Selden's father, Captain Samuel Brewer (1776-1847). Captain Samuel amassed nearly 3,000 acres of land in both Hartford and East Hartford, although he sold much of it before the Civil War. He traded cigars in New York for dry goods and rum, which he sold in a dry goods store he operated in East Hartford. Captain Samuel also served three terms as town selectman, four terms as a state representative, and was one of five members of the building committee for the East Hartford Congregational Church erected at Church Corners in 1836. Captain Samuel gifted the historic property to his son Selden around 1827, and he passed on the tobacco plantation to Seldon as well. Like his father, Seldon served several times as the town selectman. Selden lived in the home from its completion (believed to be 1833) until he died in 1876. 

Seldon's son, Norman (1840 - 1910), left the Hartford area for California during the 1860s, where he made numerous modest gold ore claims. However, Seldon died in 1876, so Norman returned to East Hartford. He married Agnes Roberts, a descendant of Reverend Thomas Hooker of Hartford, and Mark Twain's personal secretary. Norman took over the family plantation, which by that time had dwindled to 175 acres. Yet, the Brewer plantation remained the town's most extensive. He occupied the historic Selden Brewer house from 1876, when his father passed, to his own death in 1910. 

Seldon's grandson (Norman's oldest son) Vincent took possession of the house in 1910 upon his father's passing. He remained in the home until 1948. He managed the plantation during East Hartford's most successful period for tobacco production. Many of the laborers on the farm arrived from Italy, which speaks to the population boom and immigration story of East Hartford and Hartford during the early twentieth century. Italian immigrants also provided much of the difficult labor during the construction (1903 - 1908) of the nearly 1,2000-foot-long Morgan G. Bulkeley Bridge that connects Hartford to East Hartford.

Vincent's ability to train Italian immigrants to farm led the U.S. Government to appointed Vincent and his brother, Norman Jr., to travel to South Africa to teach modern farming techniques in South Africa from 1908 to 1911. (That period was an exceptionally turbulent time for that region due to British imperialism, creation of a new constitution and polity, wars, and intense racial tensions -- all of which go beyond the scope of this entry.)  

Meanwhile, Seldon's granddaughter (Norman's daughter), Fay, married Archibald Shamels, who worked for the State Department of Agriculture. He later moved to California and subsequently established the Riverside Experiment Station in Pasadena, where he contributed to the development of the navel orange.

From 1948 to the 1960s, the house has changed hands six times. By 1980, modern developments and interstate construction dwarfed the home, leaving little of any reminders of the time when the home stood among many large houses owned by several prominent residents. Thus, during the 1980s, a group financed a project to move the house to its current location. Today, the local historical society occupies the historic home. But, its presence stands as a reminder of a family that had profound influence on the local economy the tobacco industry, as well as local politics, immigration, agriculture, and much more.

Anderson, P.J. "Growing Tobacco in Connecticut." The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 564. ct.gov. January, 1953. https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/pesticides/Certification/Applicator/PATobaccoManualpdf.pdf.

Clouette, Bruce and Maura Cronin. "Nomination Form: Bulkeley Bridge." National Register of Historic Places. nps.gov. December 10, 1993. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/94ce3a4a-4054-45c9-aa1a-ddb273efcdc3/.

Percy W. Bidwell. "The Agricultural Revolution in New England." The American Historical Review 26, no. 4 (1921): 683-702. 

Ryan, Susan. "Nomination Form: Selden Brewer House." nps.gov.  June 4, 1979. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/687045df-58d7-41dc-91e3-3dec53d83847/.