This property’s former residents played an important role in Stonington’s earlier heydays. Captain George Robbins built this home in the late 1800s, early 1900's.  He captained a schooner called “The Clinton”, and tied up this vessel along the shorefront across from the property.  “The Clinton” was used to carry freight up and down the eastern seaboard, including large chunks of ice that were harvested from area lakes and transported south for use in refrigeration.  When first built, the home had no electricity.  A hand pump was used in the kitchen, and a cistern were used to collect and store rainwater. Only the kitchen and upstairs bedroom above the kitchen (accessed by back stairway off the kitchen) were utilized in the cold winter months, heated by a coal fired cooking stove, with the remaining rooms closed off.  When warmer weather arrived, the doors were opened up and the remaining rooms were utilized.  The cistern was in use up until the 1990s when a city wide water system was put in and now town water supplies the home.  In the back of the home is a structure that was built to house the crew of “The Clinton”, yet never fully completed.

In 1927, “Grandpa”, Mr Ben Sturdee, purchased this home for $500!   Mr. Sturdee’s employment with seafaring was short lived.  While working on a wind jammer, transporting granite to New York for construction of the George Washington Bridge, the heavily laden ship had water breaking over her deck. This experience influenced Mr. Sturdee that maybe opening a grocery store was the way to go!!  Mr. Sturdee opened Sturdee & Co, a grocery store located in downtown Stonington,  which serviced the vibrant quarrying and fishing community of Stonington for over 30 years.

The Sturdees raised their family in this home, and later welcomed their grandchildren and great grandchildren each summer, who all cherished their time with family and exploring the magic of this area!!