A celebrated historic landmark in Darien is opening up to the community this spring!
The Mather Homestead, located on the corner of Brookside Road and Stephen Mather Road, was built in 1778 by Deacon Joseph Mather (son of prominent Darien historical figure Moses Mather) and owned by the Mather family through seven generations.
A notable example of late 18th century houses, this historic residence served as a safe house for neighbors to hide valuables from the British during the Revolutionary War.
The Homestead eventually became the home of Stephen Tyng Mather, who is credited with starting the U.S. National Parks Service and serving as its first director from 1916 to 1929. When Mather became assistant to the Secretary of the Interior in 1915, the U.S. owned only 14 parks and 18 national monuments, all administered by army officers or political appointees. When Mather retired in 1929, he left a professionally administered, progressive National Park Service that included 20 parks and 32 national monuments. Mather laid a sound basis for the future enlargement and development of a national park movement in the U.S.
The home was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1964 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966. Several years ago, two open fields at the corners of Stephen Mather Road and Brookside Road were conveyed to the Darien Land Trust to be maintained as open fields.
In 2017 the home became a Darien Protected Town Landmark and was donated to the newly created Mather Homestead Foundation thanks to the generosity of the McPherson family. The Mather Homestead Foundation, dedicated to the preservation of the Mather Homestead as a treasured historical place for education and enjoyment, is now maintaining this impeccably maintained historic residence as a museum.
The Mather Homestead will be open to the public by appointment in late May. More information can be found at matherhomestead.org.