The Bush-Holley House is a National Historic Landmark

National Historic Landmark

A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...

 in the Cos Cob section of Greenwich

Greenwich, Connecticut

Greenwich is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 61,171. It is home to many hedge funds and other financial service companies. Greenwich is the southernmost and westernmost municipality in Connecticut and is 38+ minutes ...

, Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

. It was constructed circa 1730 and in the late nineteenth century was a boarding house and the center of the Cos Cob Art Colony

Cos Cob Art Colony

The Cos Cob Art Colony was a group of artists, many of them American Impressionists, who gathered in and around Cos Cob, a section of Greenwich, Connecticut, from about 1890 to about 1920....

. It is operated by the Historical Society of the Town of Greenwich.

Bush-Holley Historic Site features the circa 1730 Bush-Holley House, home of Connecticut’s first art colony. From 1890 to 1920, the house was run as a boarding house and was a gathering place for artists, writers and editors. Scores of art students came to study with leading American Impressionists John Henry Twachtman

John Henry Twachtman

John Henry Twachtman was an American painter best known for his impressionist landscapes, though his painting style varied widely through his career. Art historians consider Twachtman's style of American Impressionism to be among the more personal and experimental of his generation...

, J. Alden Weir

J. Alden Weir

Julian Alden Weir was an American impressionist painter and member of the Cos Cob Art Colony near Greenwich, Connecticut...

, Theodore Robinson

Theodore Robinson

Theodore Robinson was an American painter best known for his impressionist landscapes. He was one of the first American artists to take up impressionism in the late 1880s, visiting Giverny and developing a close friendship with Claude Monet...

 and Childe Hassam

Childe Hassam

Frederick Childe Hassam was a prolific American Impressionist painter, noted for his urban and coastal scenes. Along with Mary Cassatt and John Henry Twachtman, Hassam was instrumental in promulgating Impressionism to American collectors, dealers, and museums...

.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.

It was further declared a National Historic Landmark

National Historic Landmark

A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...

 in 1991.

Guided tours of Bush-Holley House feature historic interiors related to the Bush and Holley families and an American Impressionist art collection. The William Hegarty Gallery presents historically and artistically significant exhibitions curated by foremost authorities on art and history. Exhibits focus on the art and artists of the Cos Cob art colony, museum collections and aspects of Greenwich history.

External links

• Bush-Holley House - official site at The Historical Society of the Town of Greenwich
• Bush-Holley House, 39 Strickland Road, Cos Cob, Fairfield County, CT: 17 photos, 18 drawings, and 12 data pages, at Historic American Building Survey