“ E L M W O O D ” BUILT 1781, WINDSOR, CONNECTICUT
Born in Windsor on April 29, 1745, Oliver Ellsworth was one of the framers of the United States Constitution, Connecticut’s first Senator, and the author of the Judiciary Act, which forms the basis of our present day federal judicial system.
Ellsworth and his wife, Abigail Wolcott, returned to live at the Homestead in 1782, where they remained until his death in 1807. While living at the Homestead, Ellsworth was visited by President George Washington in 1789, and by President John Adams in 1799.
Ellsworth once said, “I have visited several countries and I like my own the best. I have been in all the States of the Union, and Connecticut is the best State. Windsor is the pleasantest town in the State, and I have the pleasantest place in the the town of Windsor. I am content – perfectly content to die on the banks of the Connecticut River.”
Today, the Ellsworth Homestead serves as a museum and is operated by the Connecticut Daughters of the American Revolution. Visitors touring the house will find many of Ellsworth’s personal heirlooms, including a letter to him from George Washington, and a square of Gobelin tapestry presented to him by Napoleon Bonaparte.
