The Florence Griswold House

I have spent many hours and traveled many miles exploring interesting houses and historic places. Each one has its own story waiting to be found. Often, these journeys are ones I take alone, guided by curiosity and the comfort of quiet exploration.

One such journey led me to the Florence Griswold House in Old Lyme, Connecticut. Florence Griswold inherited the house from her father, Captain Robert Harper Griswold (she and her sister Adele received it in the 1890s). Old Lyme was a sleepy coastal town, but her financial need led her to take in boarders. What began as a means of income soon became a haven for creativity as many of her boarders were artists seeking beauty and community.

By 1900, painters such as Childe Hassam began to gather here. They found the Connecticut landscape something like the French Impressionists discovered in Giverny, with changing light and color throughout the day. This group became known as the Old Lyme Art Colony, a movement that sought to interpret the world with light and emotion.

Walking through the Florence Griswold House, you can sense the presence of these artists. Door panel and walls are hand-painted by the very artists who once stayed there. It’s as if the house itself became part of the art.

Florence Griswold never painted a canvas herself, yet her home became a masterpiece, a place where artists found belonging and inspiration.