Smith–Harris House (East Lyme, Connecticut)

The Smith–Harris House, listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Thomas Avery House, is a 2+1⁄2-story clapboarded Greek Revival home on Society Road in East Lyme, Connecticut. It is believed that the farmhouse was built in 1845–1846 as a wedding gift for Thomas Avery and Elizabeth Griswold. It remained in the Avery family until 1877, when it was purchased by William H. Smith. By the 1890s, the farm was managed by Smith's younger brother, Herman W. Smith, and nephew, Frank A. Harris. In 1900, the two married Lula and Florence Munger, sisters, and both resided in the house. In 1955, the house was sold to the Town of East Lyme, and the sisters continued to live in the house until requiring a nursing home. The house was saved from demolition by citizens and restored. It opened on July 3, 1976, as a historic house museum, operated and maintained by the Smith–Harris House Commission and the Friends of Smith–Harris House. It is open from June through August and throughout the year by appointment. The Smith–Harris house was added to the National Historic Register of Places on August 22, 1979.