Built about 1670, it is one of Connecticut's oldest surviving houses, notable for its occupation by refugee Acadians following their 1755 deportation from Nova Scotia.

[1] The Acadian House is located in a residential setting just northeast of the town center of Guilford, on the south side of Union Street near its junction with Market Place.

It is a 2+1⁄2-story timber-framed structure, with a gabled roof, large central chimney, and clapboarded exterior.

Its main facade, oriented at an angle to the street, is three bays wide, with a central entrance framed with simple moulding and topped by a fourlight transom window.

The rear slope of the roof extends to the first floor, giving the house a saltbox shape.