The Oliver Filley House is a Greek Revival

Greek Revival architecture

The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...

 building in Bloomfield

Bloomfield, Connecticut

Bloomfield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 20,626 at the 2009 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and 0.2 square miles is water.Bloomfield is bordered by Windsor to the...

, Connecticut, United States. It was occupied by Captain Oliver Filley and his family, a tinsmith

Tinsmith

A tinsmith, or tinner or tinker or tinplate worker, is a person who makes and repairs things made of light-coloured metal, particularly tinware...

  who served as a captain in the Connecticut militia during the War of 1812

War of 1812

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

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Oliver Filley Senior and Junior

Shortly after the end of the Revolutionary War, Oliver Filley Sr. purchased land and a house in intonbury, Connecticut|Wintonbury. He died at the age of 39 in 1796, leaving a part of the family farm to his 12-year-old son Oliver Jr. Filley received only nine acres (9 acres (3.6 ha)) at the time of his father's death, but would add to his holdings, and eventually built up the farm to include the original holdings. He started a tinsmith business in 1806, a year after marrying Annis Humphrey from nearby Simsbury. His business grew, and he expanded his operations with manufacturing and warehousing in Elizabethtown, New Jersey

Elizabeth, New Jersey

Elizabeth is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 124,969, retaining its ranking as New Jersey's fourth largest city with an increase of 4,401 residents from its 2000 Census population of 120,568...

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Filley operated out of the New Jersey location, until the War of 1812 forced him to return to Connecticut. The Federalists of New England were not in favor of the war; as a consequence, the Connecticut troops were not placed under federal control. Filley was appointed captain in 1812, and put in charge of forty militiamen, but he did not see any combat as the British did not reach this far north.

The House

Filley built the house for his son Jay in 1834. It is a stone building, built in a Greek Revival style. The walls are made of rubblestone and multi-colored traprock. The floor plan is unusual, consisting of two intersecting wings. The primary living quarters were in the west wing. Filley's decision to build a stone house was partly motivated by the desire of his son, but he was also aware that a stone house was becoming a status symbol in the area. It would become the third stone house in Bloomfield, following a house built two year earlier by David Grant, and one built a year earlier by Francis Gillette.

The house is now owned by the town of Bloomfield, which is planning a restoration project.