Last Weekend This Season for Topsmead Cottage Tours

This Saturday and Sunday (Oct. 11 & 12) are your last chance this season to enjoy the free guided tours of Miss Edith Chase’s landmark English Tudor-style cottage at Topsmead State Forest.

Completed in 1925 and designed by noted architect Richard Henry Dana, Jr., the cottage is furnished with 17th and 18th-century English country antiques, reflecting the family’s “understated wealth” and an eye for detail.

The tours, presented by the Friends of Topsmead State Forest, take place from noon to 4:30 p.m. on the2nd and 4th weekends of the month from June into mid-October.

Guests meet at the front door of the cottage and go on the next available 30-minute tour. The last tour begins at 4 p.m. This weekend’s listing:
https://visitlitchfieldct.com/events?event=Guided-Tours-of-the-Chase-Cottage-at-Topsmead-10-11-2025

Head to https://www.friendsoftopsmead.org/visitor-info.html to learn more about Topsmead, which offers 510 acres of forests and meadows for year-round passive recreation including walking, picnicking, bird watching, sledding, and cross-country skiing. There’s also the Edith Chase Ecology Trail, a mile-long walk with interpretive signs.

Topsmead is located off Route 118 east of Litchfield center. Coming from Litchfield, take Route 118 toward Harwinton, turn right on East Litchfield Road, right on Buell Road, and then right on Chase Road to reach the parking lot. Coming from Thomaston on Route 254, take a right onto Route 118 and follow the route above. Coming from Harwinton/Route 8, take a left on Clark Road, a right on East Litchfield Road, a left on Buell Road, and right onto Chase Rd.

(Photos from October 2023)