Liberty Green Historic District is a local historic district in the town of Clinton, Connecticut, and Liberty Green is a triangular town green within it. The district was created in 1979 following a lengthy study, report and enabling ordinance [1][2]
Description
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The Liberty Green Historic District consists of six 18th-century houses and stone walls surrounding a triangular common.[3] The six contiguous properties included within the district are defined on the National Register of Historic Places and consist of four Colonial structures, one Federal/Greek Revival, and one undefined style structure.[4] The corner property of Liberty Street and East Main Street is an established bed and breakfast.[5]
The district is located within the larger, National Register of Historic Places-listed Clinton Village Historic District.[3]
History
editA vestige of 17th-century common land, Liberty Green is a park-like triangle between Liberty Street and East Main Street, encompassing the village green.[4] The common town land was part of a larger open space for militia war drills, and was also the site of one of Clinton's earliest schoolhouses.[4] The Liberty Green Historic District was chosen as the site for the town's Civil War monument (a granite soldier atop a tall pedestal), and a small cannon from the War of 1812.[6]
Beginning in 1846, a group of citizens banded together to plant shade trees and Liberty Green came to assume its present park-like appearance and function. In addition to providing a peaceful public open space, it served a symbolic function, recalling the town's patriotic past and providing the site for memorials to the town's soldiers.[4]
On 5 December 1976, a school group buried a time capsule called the Legacy I on Liberty Green. The schoolchildren indicated that the capsule should be opened on 4 July 2976.[7]
In 2009, the Clinton Town Tree Warden ordered a public tree removal[8] in order to clear half-dozen overgrown trees and prune many large and dangerous branches from the Liberty Green trees. The tree removal provides additional open space and sunlight.[citation needed]
In 2010, the Liberty Green retail complex, located across the street from the historic district, was set to be completed with the construction of a two-story building affording 5,500 square feet (510 m2) of retail space and three second-story apartments. This building joins a hardware store, Japanese restaurant, and community health center in the same complex.[9]
Today Liberty Green continues to serve as an important public gathering space for Clinton's townspeople. It is a location for small church festivals and other events, as well as the ceremonial destination of the annual Memorial Day Parade.
References
edit- ^ "Report: Historic District Study Committee" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on May 29, 2014. Retrieved January 19, 2012.
- ^ "Ordinance: Liberty Green Historic District". Retrieved January 19, 2012.
- ^ a b "Liberty Green Historic District". Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation.
- ^ a b c d Bruce Clouette and Maura Cronin (March 25, 1994). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Clinton Village Historic District". National Park Service. and Accompanying photos from 1994 (photo #16 shows Liberty Green, photo #9 shows houses on the green)
- ^ "3 Liberty Green Bed and Breakfast". 3liberty.com. Retrieved October 17, 2010.
- ^ "Clinton Village Historic District". livingplaces.com. 2010.
- ^ Inscription plaque on marker stone.
- ^ "Public Notice of Tree Removal (photo)". Kelseytown Gazette.
- ^ Fisher, Stan (July 2, 2010). "Clinton's Liberty Square finally taking shape?". New Haven Register. Retrieved October 17, 2010.