The Salt-Box House: Eighteenth Century Life in a New England Hill Town

Jane DeForest Shelton (1843-1914), was the daughter of Edward Nelson Shelton and Mary Jane DeForest; Shelton, Connecticut is named for her father, an industrialist and developer in the 19th century. She wrote for "Harper's Monthly," earning a solid reputation as an historian. "The Salt-Box House" is her best known work, first published in 1900. Its story is an account of the Shelton from colonial times through the early 19th century. She based her work on family papers and stories passed down to her, to portray an historically accurate account of life during and after the colonial period of New England. Given her direct knowledge and her sympathy and love for the people she wrote about, reading this book today provides us with a rich and vivid sense of our past history. This edition includes an introduction by Bill Hosley, Director of the New Haven Museum and Historical Society that places the book in a context meaningful for contemporary readers interested in American history.