PHOTOS: Second Graders Discover Bill Tavern

A class of Gales Ferry school second graders were found to be enjoying a visit to what some people refer to as Bill's Tavern. Luckily for them, the place hasn't been in use for quite some time and students were filled with wonderment, rather than mischief, during their visit.

Dave Holdridge and Janet Barnett, dressed in clothing from another era, welcomed the students and surprised them with tales of years past when ladies bought fabric to sew their own dresses and when tradesmen sat by a fire talking to strangers on the way to Groton or Norwich.

Built in 1816, Gurdon Bill's Tavern, (a.k.a. Bill's Station, Bill's Store) sited on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. The store, waystation (and perhaps tavern and inn) is located at the intersection of Church Hill Road and Spicer Hill Road. The area used to be named the "Crossroads" and considered the center of town by many at the time, according to Kit Foster's book, "Ledyard and Gales Ferry."

The plaque outside the old building says: "This country store and stagecoach waystation was once a meeting place of local residents and passing travelers. the building retains its original features and location. Two important roads of early New England intersected at this point."