Possibly my favorite house in Assonet is this Federal style beauty on Elm Street, it is just so well-proportioned and stately. The home was built in 1802 as the home of Reverend David A. Leonard, who actually sold it before it could be completed to Ebenezer Peirce, Leonard moved to Bristol, RI. Ebenezer Peirce built the Congregational Church nearby in Assonet in 1809, so it is likely that with his carpentry skills, he updated this home to his standards when he acquired the property. Its monitor roof, four tall chimneys at the corners, large quoins, splayed lintels, and 12/12 sash on the second floor make it stand out on the busy street. A portico on Doric columns shelters the central door. The home was owned later by Peter Nichols, a blacksmith, then by his son-in-law, Captain Benedict Andros, a sea captain, who routinely brought Irish immigrants over to the United States during the Great Famine in the 1840s.
Buildings of New England 