NRHP Reference # 02000867 Area 8,000 m² Added to NRHP 23 August 2002 | Designated CP February 6, 1986 Architectural style American Colonial | |
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MPS Rochambeau's Army in Connecticut, 1780-1782 MPS | ||
The Dorrance Inn, also known as the Samuel Dorrance House, is a historic inn at 748 Plainfield Pike in Sterling, Connecticut. It is a 2-1/2 story wood frame structure, five bays wide, with a side gable roof and a large central chimney. The oldest portion of the house, consisting of the eastern three bays, was built c. 1722. The eastern bays were added later, but do not extend the full depth of the house. Greek Revival treatments were added to the front door and house corners in the 19th century. The inn is notable as a place that hosted officers of the French Army in 1781 and 1782, as it was along the march route taken by French commander Rochambeau's troops en route to Yorktown, Virginia. Dorrance's Inn is one of a few places mentioned by name in multiple accounts written by French officers.
The building was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 2002. It is also a contributing building in the Sterling Hill Historic District, NRHP-listed in 1986, and it is one of the sites along the 3.6 miles (5.8 km) NRHP-listed linear historic district, March Route of Rochambeau's Army: Plainville Pike.