The claim
A white clapboard inn on Essex's Main Street, a short walk from the Connecticut River, trading since the Revolutionary era. Its Tap Room, reputedly an old schoolhouse, is hung with marine paintings and has hosted sea-shanty nights for over half a century. British raiders passed through in 1814, and the Sunday Hunt Breakfast carries on a long tradition.
What the records show
The inn's opening by the Griswold family in 1776 is its own tradition and no licence has been traced; what is recorded on the state marker is that the house was here at the time of the British raid on Essex in 1814. Wikipedia has the Tap Room building beginning as a schoolhouse of about 1735, moved to the site. Six families have owned the inn in its history, the present one the Pauls, for about thirty years, and the house is preparing to mark its 250th year in 2026. The Tap Room opens daily from half past eleven, with music several nights a week until eleven, so a drink here does not wait on a meal.
| Year | What | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1776 | Claimed founding | The pub |
| 1814 | First record of a drinking house here | Internet Archive |
What to look for inside
- Largest private collection of Antonio Jacobsen marine paintings
- Sea music in the Tap Room for more than 50 years
- Survived the 1814 British raid on Essex
Visiting
The Griswold Inn is in Essex, United States, at 36 Main Street, Essex, CT 06426. We do not list opening times, because they change; the pub’s own site is the place to check before you set out.
Sources
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Griswold_Inn
- griswoldinn.com/
- www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=183087
- savingplaces.org/stories/the-tap-room-at-the-griswold-inn-in-essex-connecticut
- ctvisit.com/listings/griswold-inn-tap-room
- archive.org/details/connecticutguide00federich
Know something we don’t?Suggest a correctionLast checked Sept 2026
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