Samuel L. Clemens, best known by his pen name Mark Twain, was a major American writer and humorist during the last half of the 19th century. Best known for two American literature classics (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn), in his early years Clemens took on a variety of jobs associated with publishing and writing. His travels took him throughout America and Europe, and in 1871, he settled down in Hartford with his bride Olivia.
   By 1873, the Clemens and his wife Olivia sought the counsel of architect Edward Tuckerman Potter to design a home on Farmington Avenue. Following a Victorian Gothic style, the 19 room, three story home occupied 11,500 square feet. The home was lit with gaslight, and eventually featured hot and cold running water, seven bathrooms, flush toilets, a burglar alarm and enunciator bell. Spending a small fortune (45,000 dollars) on their new home, the Clemenses kept the interior design simple at first. Here, Sam Clemens enjoyed his greatest success as a writer, penning Tom Sawyer, A Tramp Abroad, Old Times on the Mississippi, Huckleberry Finn, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthurs Court and the Prince and the Pauper. Enjoying the financial rewards for his literature and lectures, the Clemenses employed the well known Associated Artists to decorate the interior of the Mark Twain House.
   Today, visitors may enjoy the Mark Twain House that contains more than 50,000 artifacts, including manuscripts, photographs, Tiffany decorations and original furnishings. A three million dollar restoration has returned the home to its original 1881-90 appearance and is now the centerpiece of the Mark Twain House and Museum.

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