AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,

Store / Gallery / SHowroom / Design Library

29 Church St.

The AMEICO store & gallery is located in the historic 1917 Telephone Exchange Building of New Milford, Connecticut. The design shop is open to the public and sells a broad assortment of Ameico’s design gifts, lighting, eyewear, and more. Ask about the rotating exhibitions featured in the gallery above the shop while visiting. 

Store hours:
Monday - Friday 9:00am - 5:00pm
Saturday, Sunday -  Closed

29 Church Street
New Milford, CT 06776
AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,
AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,
AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,
EXHIBITIONS
AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,
AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,
AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,
AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,

Conservation Meausres

Solar Powered

Solar panels now supply the bulk of 29 Church Street's energy demand. Panels are carefully placed, so as not to impact the historic appearance of building. Dual flush toilets, low flow showerheads and faucets. A full shower and changing room, encouraging employees to run or bike to work.

Read more about our commitment to sustainability.

Building History

Telephone Exchange Building

SNET was formed in 1882, and counts among its precursors the first telephone company in the world, the New Haven Telephone Company, established in 1878, and the New Milford Telephone Company founded in 1880. These early dates are notable given that patents were filed in 1876 by Alexander Graham Bell’s for the telephone, and by Tivador Puskás for the switchboard exchange that same year. By the 1910s the demand for telephone service increased and this triggered SNET to construct a number of new telephone exchange buildings in many Connecticut towns. 

At the time of the 29 Church Street construction, the United States had been supplying all of war-embroiled Europe with raw and manufactured materials.

 Apparent on the exterior of the building is the use of different colored bricks from the front of the building to the rear. This is believed to be a result of the wide-spread shortages experienced in the domestic market due to the war effort. 

However, news articles of the day stated that “no expense was spared” in the construction of this “state of the art” building. Ample natural light, large resting rooms and a shower were provided on the second level at 29 Church St.

By the time of the US entry into the First World War in 1917, US telephone linemen and switchboard operators were called into service overseas as they brought strong skills in helping with troop and emergency communication. The women who served overseas were admired in the local communities from which they came.

By the mid-1950s SNET grew out of the facility and moved to a larger building nearby. In the 1980s it became one of the contributing structures leading to the establishment of a historic district of New Milford surrounding the Green.

In the interim, 29 Church housed a temporary elementary school, a local chemical company, and served intermittently as town offices and the local Parks and Recreation center.

Soon after the building was closed due to growing concern with asbestos and lead contamination.

2012 Renovation - Following the acquisition of the building by Peter Kahane in July 2012, a complete state-supervised remediation was conducted. A year of renovations followed, led by local general contractor Glen Hochstetter of Hammersmith, Inc and an expert team of local tradesmen and suppliers.

AMEICO, 29 Church St, New Milford, Design Distributor,

Motivated to keep the building as original As possible, Kahane engaged the services of Tod Bryant, of Heritage Resources, Norwalk, CT and collaborated with historic preservation groups at the federal, state and municipal levels. 

Historic preservation tax credits were granted to Kahane upon completion of the renovations, the first to have completed a project under this new state incentive program. Connecticut Light and Power, purchasing a portion of the tax credit, is recognized for its support In making the restoration of 29 Church Street financially possible.

The AMEICO office occupied its new premises on December 30th, 2013, and opened to the public on June 15th, 2014.

100 Years in the Making: AMEICO celebrated the centennial of the Southern New England Telephone Exchange Building in June of 2018. An exhibition of rare telephones were generously donated by local collectors: Mark Berghold, George Champion, and Nancy A. Davis; the earliest examples of which would have been found in households when 29 Church Street was constructed. 

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Past Exhibitions

100 Years of Adjustable Light

100 Years of Adjustable Light

Interaction of Color and Form: Works by Josef and Anni Albers

Interaction of Color and Form: Works by Josef and Anni Albers

Japanese Contemporary Craft

Japanese Contemporary Craft

25+1 Anniversary Exhibition

25+1 Anniversary Exhibition

100 Years of Adjustable Light

100 Years of Adjustable Light

Interaction of Color and Form: Works by Josef and Anni Albers

Interaction of Color and Form: Works by Josef and Anni Albers

Japanese Contemporary Craft

Japanese Contemporary Craft

25+1 Anniversary Exhibition

25+1 Anniversary Exhibition