Hillside Cottage on Thorne Place was one of the summer cottages of the George Hotel at the turn of the century in Black Rock.
Bridgeport, the ‘Park City’, was once the most popular summer vacation resort between New York City and Newport, Rhode Island. Black Rock Harbor was home to what was perhaps the Sound’s grandest summer resort hotel. The George Hotel, which opened in 1874, was built on Grovers Hill, near what is now St. Mary’s-by-the-Sea.
The French Second Empire style George Hotel was built by George A. Wells, who was the public relations director for Bridgeport’s most famous resident, P.T. Barnum, the hotel’s main financial backer. Wells apparently learned the art of shameless promotion from Barnum: the George Hotel’s promotional material promised “a bath with every room,” the operative word being “with” - not “in”. Guests wishing to bathe could wade in Long Island Sound! The George Hotel no longer stands, but its “Shore House,” directly on the waterfront, which was once the hotel bar and a dining room, is now the Black Rock Yacht Club.
I listed and sold this 5 bedroom 3.5 bath, 4,735 SF home in 2005 for $1.1 million.
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