Both families who lived in the Society’s two historic houses were involved in a quarantine situation in the late 1700s. Dr. Chaffee ordered the Howard family to be quarantined after Capt. Howard contracted smallpox and spread it to his three sons. The care for all of them fell on the shoulders of Mrs. Ann Howard.
In the decades following the Connecticut River's discovery by Europeans, the numerous shallows and oxbow bends of the river limited the river’s potential as a trading hub. However, throughout the 17th, 18th, and early 19th centuries, maritime trade along the Connecticut River slowly and steadily grew.
The main idea behind the Society’s Strong-Howard House is to transport guests back to the year 1810, when the Howard family dwelt within the home. Families such as the Howards had to contend with shifting predicaments throughout the year, ranging from frigid indoor temperatures in the winter to swarms of pests in the summer.
In the spring of 2006 a team of architectural detectives studied the Strong House to produce a Historic Structure Report that documents the house's structural history.