Star on the Storrs
House Museum
Have you ever
noticed the plaques
on many of the
antique houses in
Longmeadow? The
markers feature a
white star and a
many also have a
number in the middle
of the star. Why do
these houses have
markers and what do
the symbols mean?
The house marker
project was part of
Longmeadow's
celebration of the
country's
bicentennial. The
numbers on the
markers correspond
to the numbers on a
brochure created by
the Longmeadow
Bicentennial
Commission in 1974
entitled “Colonial
Longmeadow: A Brief
History and Guide to
the 18th and Early
19th Century Homes”.
The brochure
features a map of
Longmeadow Street
drawn by Longmeadow
resident Wallis H.
Sturtevant. Designed
to be a walking tour
of historic
Longmeadow, 80
historic homes were
assigned a number
and they were
briefly described.
Numbering began at
the north end of
Longmeadow Street
and continued south
to the Connecticut
border. Houses #78,
#79, and #80 are on
Williams Street.
Colonial Longmeadow:
A Brief History and
Guide to the 18th
and Early 19th
Century Homes
The markings on each
plaque also provide
information on each
house.
-
If a house was built in
the 18th Century, the
star is on a red
background.
-
If a house was built in
the 19th Century, the
star is on a blue
background. There are
10 homes for which the
build date could not
conclusively be
determined and these
homes have both red and
blue backgrounds.
-
If the marker also
includes a tri-cornered
hat, someone who lived
in the house fought in
the Revolutionary War.
Stars with the hat
indicate how many
soldiers from the house
fought as Minutemen.
-
If an “A” is on the
plaque, the house is of
architectural interest.
Legend of Symbols
The Bicentennial Commission
asked homeowners for
permission to install the
wooden markers on their
homes for the duration of
the Bicentennial Celebration
(April 1975 - December
1976); at the end of the
celebration, the markers
were to be removed. But, in
December 1976, almost all
homeowners requested that
the markers remain on their
homes, so most of these
markers, which were designed
to be temporary, stayed in
place.
In 1988, these 80 homes were
featured in
Historic Homes of Longmeadow,
a book written by Longmeadow
residents Chris and Susan
Hall and Jeff and Nancy
Hayes. The authors further
researched each of the
houses in the “Colonial
Longmeadow” brochure and
included an image of each
house.
Historic Homes of Longmeadow is
out of print but a copy can
be found at Storrs Library.
Historic Homes of Longmeadow
The wooden plaques, which
were intended for limited
use, weathered over the
years and the Longmeadow
Historical Commission
fielded many requests for
replacement signage. In
2003, Alex Bistran of Boy
Scout Troop 90 earned his
Eagle Scout award for a
project that replaced
weathered house signs with
new signs. The replacement
plaques do not include a
number, just the white star
on a blue or red background.
A sample replacement sign is
the one on the Storrs House
Museum which is shown at the
top of this article.
Since 1988, new online
databases and other research
tools have enabled
researchers to uncover
additional information, and
sometimes correct erroneous
information, about these
homes. Judy and Jim Moran
provided updated research on
many of these homes and the
families that lived in them
through the “Throw Back
Thursday”
articles that the
Longmeadow Historical
Society sent out from 2016
through 2020. Ongoing
research will further
illuminate the stories of
the homes and their owners.
Today, the map in the
“Colonial Longmeadow”
brochure is available online
as an
interactive walking tour.
Links to each home provide a
history of the house from
Historic Homes of Longmeadow.
Further information about
houses, as well as
information about other
Longmeadow houses, can be
found at our interactive
online map,
Through the Lens- Longmeadow
100 Years Ago.
Take a walk down Longmeadow
Street, either virtually or
on foot (getting your steps
in!), and help celebrate our
town's rich architectural
heritage.
Sources
-
Historic Homes of
Longmeadow
-
“Colonial Longmeadow: A
Brief History and Guide
to the 19th and Early
19th Century Homes”
-
Longmeadow Historical
Society Archives
