Our Buildings
Original Bacon Academy
Pierpoint Bacon died in December of 1800. His will directed that the left the bulk of his estate, approximately $35,000, be used to fund a “school of high learning”. It was a significant gift as there were very few high schools in Connecticut, or anywhere in the United States, at that time.
At a school society meeting in 1802, a committee presented an architectural plan to the society for its review. The plan, which was approved at the same meeting, declared that the building was to be made of brick and would be 70 feet in length, 34 feet wide and 27 feet high. It was to be divided into three stories and there would be balcony on top for a bell. The estimated cost was $4500 though the actual cost was $7,059.37. The building was constructed of native brick that was made on the farm of Captain Daniel Taylor.
Over the years, the interior walls were often moved to accommodate the needs of the student population and in the early 1920’s, a one story addition was added to the back of the building to house indoor bathrooms. However, the first Bacon Academy is essentially the same today as it was when it opened in 1803.
The Green
Colchester had no town green in its early days. The land that we know as the Town Green was private property in the 1700’s. In 1820, the Trustees purchased 1.5 acres of land that bordered the newly built Norwich Road from John R. Watrous, Ralph Isham, and David Deming for $200.
The deed states, “ said land shall be and is to be, and remain open, for uses of said Academy and for a public parade forever, and be unencumbered by any building of any description or any other encumbrance except shade trees which may be set out thereon.” It is recorded on page 45, Volume 19 of the Colchester Land Records.
Day Hall
In the fall of 1929, the former chapel of the Congregational Church was given to Bacon Academy by Edward Day, class of 1890. Mr. Day, a member of the Board of Trustees and founder of the Day, Berry and Howard Law Firm in Hartford also paid for the building to be renovated. When the work was completed, the first floor was able to be used for assemblies and the basement floor was outfitted for instruction in Home Economics. A grateful Board of Trustees named the building Day Hall.
D.A.R. /Nathaniel Foote House
For many years, the Colchester chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution owned the oldest house in town, the Nathaniel Foote house. The chapter’s formal name was the Colonel Henry Champion Chapter, D.A.R. In 1960, the chapter determined they no longer had any need for the building and turned it over to the Bacon Academy Board of Trustees.