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A Tour of the Griswold Inn Campus

The Griswold Inn campus includes eight structures, six of them historic. Here’s some of their history, provided by Joan Paul, of the Paul family, the current owners and stewards of The Griswold Inn.

The Main Inn was built on its current spot in 1801 by Richard Hayden, the nephew of Uriah and Ann Hayden. Originally the inn/tavern was established in 1776 at the Foot of Main by Uriah and Ann Hayden. Uriah was a prominent shipbuilder of the day who got the contract to build the Oliver Cromwell, America’s First Revolutionary Warship. This created a need for housing, food and drink for shipyard workers, visiting dignitaries and statesmen. The Foot of Main is where the Oliver Cromwell was built, and where the Connecticut River Museum and Steamboat Docks are now situated. The Main Inn building at the current location, 36 Main Street, was erected in 1801 by Richard Hayden, nephew of Uriah and Ann. Supposedly it is one of the first three-story structures built in Connecticut. The guest accommodations in the Main Inn, housed on the second and third floors, have been extensively renovated twice by the Paul Family during our almost 24-year tenure, most recently in 2015 and now in 2018.

The Annex, aka the Amasa Hayden House, 1790, located directly west of the Main Inn, was a separate building until we adjoined the two buildings during an extensive renovation in 2016.

Directly across from The Annex is Griswold Corner, at the corner of Main and Ferry Streets. There are two buildings located here: the older Ephraim Bound House, 1801, is the east-facing, part gambrel, part saltbox building. The downstairs space is leased to retail operations, The Glass Basket and Toys Ahoy. The upstairs houses two suites. The adjacent building facing Main Street was originally a store from the same era but was destroyed in the 1920s. The newer two-story building was erected in the 1960s by a former operator of The Griswold Inn. That building underwent extensive renovation in 2009 by current operators of The Gris, The Paul Family. The retail space is leased to Emmy’s on Main and upstairs houses two spacious suites.

Directly across from the Main Inn is the Captain Timothy Starkey House, c.1799. Today this houses Goods & Curiosities—The Griswold Inn Store and three of the inn’s suites. In 2009, this house was extensively renovated in preparation for the 2010 opening of The Gris Store.

Griswold Square is the courtyard surrounded by four structures.

The Timothy Starkey House has a side entrance that opens out to the courtyard. Moving clockwise, The Family Cottage, available for overnight guests, is a two-story structure, erected in the 1970s. An exact replica model of the Oliver Cromwell is mounted on the side of the building.

Adjacent to the Garden Suite is the Samuel Lay Barn, circa 1861. The current structure replaced a previous iteration built in the mid-18th century. It is currently undergoing a major renovation to be completed soon. The downstairs will be offered as retail space to Truffle Shots, a business currently located at the top of the village on North Main Street, they are also owners of Essex Duck. The upper floor is being transformed into a spacious suite. This structure housed the Christmas Barn for 25 years, but in its new iteration may be informally and affectionately referred to as The Chocolate Barn.

Continuing clockwise is the Felix Starkey House, c.1802. This is now the home of Essex Coffee & Tea/The Captain’s Cup as well as Sweet P’s Ice Cream Shop, Society Scissors Hair Salon, and Essex Duck. The second floor houses two of the inn’s premier suites.

Completing the campus is the John Hayden House, 1801. This is the building is undergoing an extensive renovation that began on Jan. 2 of this year. It houses the inn’s common spaces for overnight guests to enjoy, as well as the only television on property. There are two fireplaces to enjoy as well as a large conference-sized table at which to play board games and work on puzzles. The Hayden House space may also be used for private events and small meetings. The extensive patio, which is currently being landscaped, will be used for hosting private events that could include small dinner parties, cocktail receptions and, when not in use for such, which will more often be the case, it will be another outdoor spot for the inn’s overnight guests to enjoy.—Pem McNerney