Birth of a Town almost 100 years after Birth of a House

The year was 1847 when Tyringham (or South Tyringham) became Monterey, named after General Zachary Taylor's battles in Mexico and Texas.  That year, preparations were just getting underway for a party that would mark the 100th year that the Capt John Brewer Homestead stood on Ledge Gardens.  1850 would bring the celebration of the first 100 years.  When the home was built in 1750, "Green Woods" was a name the local area was called.  100 years later, the area had a town name, and was recognized as it's own village.  An 1889 tourist guide mentions that Monterey was "charmingly attractive" and a place "to spend a summer month." 

The arrival of Capt John Brewer in 1739

The first permanent settlers in “Green Woods” as Monterey was called, were a group of proprietors from Watertown, Massachusetts.  They were Lieutenant Isaac Garfield, Tomas Slaton and Captain John Brewer, who arrived in the summer of 1739. 

Later that year Captain Brewer built the first saw mill on Konkapot Brook outfall, a tributary of what was then known as Twelve Mile Pond, now known as Lake Garfield.

Since the earliest settlers of 1739, Monterey had been part of Tyringham and was known as South Tyringham. The Captain John Brewer House also known as Ledge Gardens on Main Road and part of the original Land Grant, built around 1750, is on the National Register of Historic Places.
 

The forming of Monterey

Monterey, Massachusetts was one of the four towns laid out by the Massachusetts Legislature in 1735 to develop and protect the lands along the wilderness trail which was then the only major route connecting the lower Housatonic Valley with the Connecticut Valley and Boston. Monterey was one of the two towns on the north of the trail and was the site of the original settlement of Tyringham of which it was then a part.

The Great and General Court ordered the laying out of 63 home lots "in a compact and defensible form", one for each of the two ministers expected in the town, one for a school and one for each of the eventual grantees, who in turn had to provide 40 Sterling pounds security that they would settle on and improve their grants. This development made the trail safer and less difficult for travelers.

This is what gave rise to the Main Road and Monterey Center, eventually leading to the building of Ledge Gardens by Capt John Brewer in 1750. 

Circa 1750 home built by Captain John Brewer

This excellent Georgian style home was built circa 1750 by Captain John Brewer in Monerey, Massachusetts.

Listed with the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on March 29, 1984, this historic home and land was also known as Ledge Gardens.  This blog is designed to celebrate Ledge Gardens and to protect the memories of the home, land, and families that called this wonderful structure "home" from 1750 until today.

Join us, as we begin the exploration of Ledge Gardens...one blade of grass and one clapboard at a time.

Join us as we celebrate Ledge Gardens.