Maple Avenue (at bend)

Located on the west side of Maple Avenue at the intersection of Talcott Lane in a primarily residential neighhood, the Hattie M. Newton House is encircled by a variety of eighteenth-, nineteenth-,and  twentieth-century buildings.

Notable Features

The facade features a 1 story, open p0rch with a simple balustrade and lathe-turned columns and scroll-sawn brackets supporting a hip roof. The facade entranceway is topped
with a flat shallow cornice and features a multi-paned transom and sidelights. Cornice returns and imbricated shingles are exhibited in the gable end. The south elevation
displays a 2 story, three-sided bay topped with a fully pedimented gable featuring imbricated shingles. The north elevation features a gable end similar to the facade and
a first floor entranceway covered with an ornate Victorian period, shed-roofed portico. Throughout the house the one-over-one sash are flanked by louvered shutters. Outbildings include a 1 story, ridge-to-street gable roofed garage.

Historical or Architectural Importance

This simple 2 1/2 story, 2 bay, Queen Anne style house was erected ca. 1905 for Hattie M. Newton. The balloon frame is sided with clapboards and rests on a stone-brick foundation. The intersecting gable roof is asphalt- shingled and a brick chimney projects from the western gable. In 1903 Hattie M. Newton purchased from the Selectmen of Durham six acres and bildings with an agreement that “said Hattie Newton agrees to erect on said premises a dwelling house not to cost less than $2000 within eighteen months from this date or forfeit all claim to this property” (DLR 32: 61). In July of 1904 Mrs. Newton received an extension of one year from the Board of Selectrren to erect the new house. Hattie M. Birdsey Newton, wife of Frank Bowan Newton,was a native of Middlefield and moved to Durham shortly after she erected her new home. In 1922 Nehiroah Burr (1843-1943) of Haddam purchased the property. Burr, a famer, sold the property to his wife Ellen, a native of Brighton, England,in 1939. Mrs. Burr quit-clairred the property to her daughters, Sarah Elizabeth and Dorothy Bernice, who sold it to the present owners in 1959.
The Hattie M. Newton House is a well-preserved example of the Queen Anne style and derives its importance from its association with the Newton and Burr families and its
architectural contribution to the diversity of Durham’s Historic District.