Morning journal and courier., 1890-07-25
NORTH HAvEN's OLD HISTORY.

A Memorable ana Historic old Inn
Famous sn BygOne Days in the An
mails of the TOwn-SOme of the
Striking Features of Hts HistOry-An
Old Tavern of Colonial Days with
Its subtle, IndefinabIe Haze of Good
Fellowship.
NUMBER so.
A peculiar charm has always hung around
the old colonial tavern. A subtle, indefn-
able haze of good fellowship and abandon
has SO pervaded and enveloped it that, seen
through the mist Of years, it stands as an
enchanted spot in wilderness of common
dwellings. Romance and song have ever
found it fruitful theme, as well as the
poets pen and artists pencil.
The pioneer of tavern keepers in this
parish was Timothy Andrews. The date ia
inextant when he came to North Haven, but
it was prior to the revolutionary war. He
was descended from the honorable family of
Andrews conspicuous in the early history of
North Haven.
He probably removed here from East Hs-
ven, where he had large landed possessions,
with Captain Jared Hill and Phineas An
drews. What was his motive in locating
here one cannot say. He bought the corner
property now owned by Deacon Nathan W.
Brown then many acres in extent) and at
once put up dwelling on it. As he was a
carpenter by trade. the building was doubt
less the work of his own hands.
His fed as the pioneer landlord of the
community was on frugal and limited scale.
He may have had prophetic glimpses of the
busy scenes which were afterwards to make
the old mansion 80 famous, but there was
nothing of the dash and liberality in his ad
ministration which In after years so charac.
terized his successor.
The old colony tavern with all Its Access
sories and associations was not the growth
of a day or a month or year. l. was an
institution which came up slowly in New
England, and only reached high water mark
as religious views began to assume breadth
and the grip of the church to loosen. Not
that the church and the tavern were antago-
nistic to each other, but because of their
spiritual training and devotion to churchly
things, the people had felt no want for a
public loungin0 place.
At the outset Mr.. Andrews house had
nothing tavernwise about it to distinguish it
from the ordinary country home. 1t was
erected not far from ITO. 1t bears the
stamp of that period. Every timber is mas
eive, every partition heavy. The 'lean-to
roof" is shortened up from the A. D. 1900
type, and it's 1.-TWO smokes" indicate advance
| 10 (2) architecture. A wide hall divided il
| halves on the lower floor, and the great out
side double horizontal doors changed and
banged in royal fashion.
| The guests who came and went in and out
thsveas were not frequent. During the revo
| lutionary war men had other matter TO oc'
cupy their attention than strolling through
| the towns. Couriers ard teamsters princi.
pa!ly made up the transient population and
these were the ones who mainly pa:ronizec
Mr.. Andrews and then only for night,
lodging. There ia no tradition Washington
ever stopped there -
The income fEem such sources must have
been exceedingly mesgre and as has beer
said In a former article, Landlord Andrew
did not depend upon it for subsistence Al
witness his "book accounts,"a specimen OIL
two of which is submitted