Windsor’s small but mighty museum did not serve as such throughout its long history. In fact, it was not always at its current location on Route 9 in the center of town!

Originally known as the Steward House, the home was located on the southwest corner of the Savoy Hollow Road and Shaw Road junction, just west of the Notchview property. The property was assembled in the early 1850s. However, there are deed records indicating that the surrounding property was lived on since the late 1700s.

Windsor’s Historical Museum today [Photo by Rachel Niswander, April 2019]

In 1860, Henry LeRoy Steward purchased the property for $300. He was the one to build the house, with a deed noting there were several additional buildings on the land.

After eight years, Steward sold the property, eventually going through several hands until Arthur Budd bought it in 1926 for his Notchview estate. Budd’s employees were the last to live in the house before it was moved to a new location. The Trustees acquired the Notchview property in 1965, and in 1975 they offered the Steward House to the Windsor Historical Commission with the request that it be moved off Notchview’s property. It was moved that same year to its current site and in 1976, the museum opened to the public.

— Rachel Niswander, Terra Corps Community Engagement Coordinator