Settlers House

The Settlers House is a residential building at Shelburne Museum in Vermont made with hand-hewn timbers of beech and pine fitted with dovetailed joints. The structure includes a clay bake oven, an adjacent vegetable garden, and a connected sawmill with period equipment from an 18th-century operation.

The house was built in 1845 in East Charlotte and moved to Shelburne Museum in 1955. The relocation allowed the museum to preserve evidence of how settlers lived during the 1700s in the region.

The rooms show how settlers organized their domestic spaces around the hearth for warmth and gathering. Visitors can observe the sleeping arrangements and storage methods that shaped daily routines in colonial times.

The building sits on the museum grounds and is walkable with other historic structures in the complex. Access depends on the museum's seasonal hours, so planning ahead helps visitors experience it fully.

The attached sawmill houses authentic machinery from a late 1700s lumber operation in South Royalton that originally had nothing to do with this dwelling. This pairing demonstrates how the museum assembled working examples of colonial life beyond the home itself.

Location: Shelburne

GPS coordinates: 44.37630,-73.22970

Latest update: December 14, 2025 14:42