With its proximity to the cultural hub of New York City and its quieter suburban and rural landscapes, Connecticut was fertile ground for artists and writers in the period of Modernist movements between 1913 and 1979. Many of these cultural figures are well known through biographical and critical studies. Creative Places seeks to show how place played a significant role in creative work, and how in turn the artists and writers influenced communities in Connecticut.
135 Comstock Hill Road, New Canaan
- The Sun House
- Private Residence
- Adeline Hawkes
-
Last of several residences in Silvermine that Adeline Hawkes called home.
- Description of Significance/Historical Narrative
- As noted by Paul Graziano and Phillip S. Esser in the Silvermine Center National Register nomination in 2007, ‘The Sun House is the most documented building in Silvermine from an author’s perspective. Besides Hawkes [Adeline Hawkes who wrote an autobiographical sketch of Silvermine in 1948], William A. Boring, dean of the Columbia School of Architecture from 1919 to 1931, lived there, followed by Hamilton Hamilton and his daughter Helen Hamilton, both artists. Richardson Wright, the editor-in-chief of House and Garden for more than three decades and one of the most prolific writers on horticulture during the 20th century, lived in the house from 1918 to 1940. Wright was also President of the Silvermine Guild of Artists from 1933 to 1934. Two books written by Wright, Truly Rural (1922) and A Small House and Large Garden (1924) are testaments to the joys of country living and gardening; both books are sprinkled with references to Silvermine as well as to the Sun House itself.’
- Date of Construction
- 1845
- Historic Designation(s)
-
- National Register District
- Historic Resource Inventoryfile_download