A lovely day for a walking tour of historic houses

FALLS VILLAGE — Perfect weather and lovely old architecture combined to make a succesful house tour last Sunday to benefit the Canaan-Falls Village Historical Society.Judy Jacobs and Elizabeth Clark offered an introduction to the tour at P.D. Walsh’s Country Store. Ticket holders then took a self-guided tour of five houses, all within walking distance of the center of town.One, at 55 Belden St., was built around 1730 by Peter Hogoboom, one of the original Dutch settlers who founded the area in 1722. The property is currently owned by Sergei and Zoe Fedorjaczenko.Also featured was the Greek Revival building at 42 Brewster Road. It was built for Daniel Brewster and his wife, Mary Ann Canfield, in the mid-1800s. Daniel’s father, Jabez Brewster, lived in the house across Point of Rocks Road now owned by Bunny Williams and John Rosselli.Another Greek Revival-style house, at 18 Brewster Road, known as Grassy Hill was built by miller and farmer Cornelius Brown in 1852. More recently it has been known as the home of Richard and Mary Lanier. The Burrall-Belden House at 6 Barnes Road was built around 1780 by Revolutionary War Col. Charles Burrall. It is owned by Susan Pinsky and Marc Rosen.And Jack Limpert’s house on Route 63 began life in the early 1900s as a log cabin.Jacobs reported that 90 tickets were sold (at $20 each) — most purchased the day of the tour. The turnout was better than anticipated, she said, with steady walk-up traffic throughout the afternoon. The Historical Society also received a $150 donation from the Falls Village Inn, which donated $5 for every dinner sold to a ticketholder. Toymakers Cafe did something similar with hot chocolate sales and donated $25.“I haven’t talked to Trish but Walsh’s was hopping all day,” added Jacobs. “We will do it again next year, and I encourage homeowners with historic houses to get in touch with us.”

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