Milford chronicle., 1931-04-24
OLIVER HOUSE
FIRST HOUSE IN
NORTH MILFORD
Horn With Various Cary
ings Found In Ford
Garage, South Milford.

Everyone in town today has prob
ably taken a walk past the Ford
Garage on South Front Street. Many
have taken a similar walk on the
same street years before, seeing
where the garage is today an en-
tirely different scene, two very old,
twO-story, frame houses. In the
west side of the garage you may
still see a house which was store
at one time, but which is now un-
Occupied-Very much like the two
that used to be there.
1t may seem like a riddle to be
telling you about two very old
houses in South Milford having said
that | was going to tell you about
the oldest house in North Milford
Perhaps some of you already know
why | have taken your thoughts
first to those two old houses. They
were the remains of the Oliver
House which was the oldest in NORTH
Milford. Some time during the
years 1901 they were torn down.
Before we go any further back in
their history | might tell you about
a hunting horn found in the garage
shortly after its being built. Mr..
Wilson Vinyard, Jr., ship builder,
found in the garage which his ia
ther and Mr.. Edgar Harrington own
ed a hunting horn which was being
used for pouring oil into cars. After
cleaning the horn, carving appeared
forming a map. 1t was called by the
carver. George Losch, "A Map of
America" That George Losch is the
carver is only supposition based on
the fact that his name and ammo 1862
appears upon the horn. Though he
called it "A Map of America" it is
really a map of New York. Many
towns, forts, and bodies of water
are carved upon it. New York City
has the largest picture thus leading
one to believe that Losch lived in
the city. Another carving is that of
a hunter ready to shoot, dog
painting for breath. and a deer.
There is also carved ON the horn
the seal of England.
1t is possible but not probable
that the horn might have been in
one of the parts of divers home
and when it was torn down, lay on
the ground until someone about the
shop needed a funnel. This Valu-
able horn is still in the possession
of Mr.. Wilson Vinyard, Jr.
Let us now return to the Oliver
House. The house when built by
Oliver stood where Mrs. Sara Stan
toms home and the Masonic Temple
are, about halfway between the
street and the river.
Oliver, as l mentioned last week.
owned almost all of the land on
which Milford now stands. He
bought it in 1878 from his father
in-law, Jacob Warrington, who had
bought the land from John Bow
man, the son of Henry Bowman, to
whom the warrant for 1860 acres on
the north side of the AIispilliOn Riv-
eT was given in 1880.
Oliver, Joseph Oliver, was a mer-
chant; he bought the farmers pro-
duce and sold them supplies. Once
he tried to build drawbridge
across the MispilliOn and even got
the consent of the General Assem-
bly,, but the people, before Oliver
had started building, persuaded the
Legislature to repeal the act, since
Oliver would be able to charge a
toll.
After divers death the house was
sold to Charles Watson, who left il
to Mrs. II. Hooper. his daughter. She
in turn sold it to Curtis and Bethuel
Watson by whom it was moved to
the spot on which the Ford Garage
stands and divided it into two
houses, which were sold to Mrs.
Clara Deputy's husband. who had
them torn down and sold the lot to
Mr. Wilson Vinyard and Mr.. Edgar
Warrington.
Thus ends the history of the fa-
nous house. -Elva Davis '32