logo

About Early New England Homes

Our Family Tree

From humble beginnings in Bolton, Connecticut and with a passionate desire to preserve the cultural and structural integrity that our New England ancestors adhered to, Roger Barrett Sr. established Country Carpenters in 1974 along with his wife Lois, his son Roger, Jr. and a team of dedicated, skilled craftsmen.

Over fifty years and three generations later, our mission and philosophy at Early New England Homes by Country Carpenters remains the same – helping loyal customers across the country fulfill their dreams of owning beautiful period style homes. Our unique timbered ceiling system and hybrid building system provide your local professional builder with the materials and detailed instructions necessary to build the period style home you always dreamed about.

So often a period home is not complete without a carriage house or barn also on the property. Early New England Homes’ sister company, Post and Beam Barns by Country Carpenters, offers a variety of barns and outbuildings to complement any home.

The vision Roger Sr. had in mind when he founded Country Carpenters still remains today in both of these affiliated companies – “Helping people build beautiful country places since 1974.”

Our Story/Philosophy

In order to trace the history of our companies one must first return to a time before their existence; to a time not long after the Great Depression, to the small New England town of Mansfield, CT, along the banks of the Willimantic River. With dreams of one day building his own homestead, an industrious boy is there tending his traps. With wages earned working as a janitor, at the age of sixteen, he bought eighteen acres in Coventry, CT., there he built his first home. That young man was Roger Barrett. Although his school career was short, Roger had an insatiable hunger for learning and exemplified the term “self-taught.” Eventually his focus toward architecture, building, business management, and economics would equip him to build a business, with the help of his wife, son, and daughter, that now ships their products nationwide, and abroad, and employs a third generation of his own family.

A CALLING not to forget our rich COLONIAL HERITAGE.
Wanting the FLAVOR OF LIFE once found in the SIMPLICITY OF THE PAST.
Providing a building that is in HARMONY with the COUNTRYSIDE we live in.
A CONCERN TO RESTORE FAMILY VALUES at HOME AND IN THE COMMUNITY
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE while not losing sight of the vanishing landscapes our forefathers fashioned.
PLEDGING to support RENEWABLE RESOURCES.
Letting the reward of our work provide our needs while BRINGING JOY AND PEACE as it was intended.

“Never thought we would live in a house like this. We weren’t even looking to move just yet. Then we saw the ad and went to see the model … SERENDIPITY!!!

From that day on, our life practically revolved around making our wish to build this house come true. It was a pleasure being involved with the wonderful and kind people at Early New England Homes and Country Carpenters.”

Jack and Barbara, Tolland CT

To Bruce, Roger, and crew,

“We have been in our new home for nearly a year now and must say we have absolutely enjoyed every minute. Choosing ENEH to build our Cape was the best decision we could have made; nobody builds a finer home. Everyone who visits us is in awe of its beauty, quality, and craftsmanship. Kudos to all at ENEH for their sincere interest in answering all questions and concerns we had in the designing of our dream.”

Lance and Pauline, Lebanon CT

“Sharon and I would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere appreciation for the excellent work you and your entire company have provided. You have thought about every detail from floors, windows, posts, beams, to stairwells, handplanned wainscoting, fireplace, doors, and porches. When we first walked into your model home in Bolton, we were overwhelmed by the expertise, experience, desire, and foremost, the friendliness of everyone working here. You and your people made this experience very enjoyable for us.

We could not ask for anything more. The period house, barn and carriage house have been everything we could ask for. We are truly “poster children” for Country Carpenters and Early New England Homes, and are happy to not only recommend your company, but also offer people the opportunity to view our home and barn/carriage house as an example of your fine workmanship.

Thank you for making our dreams come true.”

Bob and Sharon, Kensington CT