farmhouse

Deborah Sampson Gannett Farmhouse // c.1790

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Deborah Sampson (1760-1827) was born in Plympton, Massachusetts, and after a troubled childhood, she worked as an indentured servant until the age of 18. She subsequently worked as a teacher during the summer, though she had little in the way of formal education. In the early 1780s, Deborah tried to disguise herself in men’s clothing and enlist in the military to fight against the British forces. She was rebuffed but tried again under the name Robert Shirtliff (sometimes spelled Shurtleff) and this time was successful. Deborah was described as being exceptionally tall, plain looking, and masculine in appearance and mannerisms. She spent at least 17 months as a combat soldier and participated in several skirmishes and sustained multiple injuries. She was reportedly hit by musket fire in the summer of 1782 but refused medical treatment for a leg injury due to fears that her true identity would be discovered. Sampson is said to have extracted one piece of shrapnel from her leg by herself; another remained in her body for the rest of her life. Sampson’s time as a Revolutionary fighter came to a halt a few months before the end of the war, after she fell ill in Philadelphia and a doctor realized that Shurtleff was, in fact, a woman. Sampson received an honorable discharge and went back to Massachusetts. She married Benjamin Gannett (1757–1837), a farmer, on April 7, 1785, and the couple moved to this farmhouse in Sharon, Massachusetts, where she lived the remainder of her life as a farmer’s wife. After Deborah Sampson died at the age of 66, her husband petitioned Congress to receive a pension as the widower of a Revolutionary veteran. A committee ultimately decided to award him the money, concluding that the war had “furnished no other similar example of female heroism, fidelity and courage.” She was the only woman to earn a full military pension for participation in the Revolutionary army. The Deborah Sampson Gannett Farmhouse is a private residence.

Samuel Hawes House // c.1742

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The Hawes’ in Wrentham, Massachusetts, were a prominent local family that largely settled in the western part of the town, building large farmhouses with properties bounded by rustic stone walls. This residence on Spring Street dates to the mid-18th century and was likely built for Samuel Hawes (1713-1795) around the time of his marriage to Priscilla Ruggles in 1741. After the death of both Samuel and Priscilla in 1795, the couple’s only son, David, bought out his two sisters value in the property and lived here with his family. The property was passed down through members of the Hawes Family until the 20th century, though later owners have still maintained and preserved this significant home for future generations.

Kentuck Farm // c.1740

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Located on West Street in the rural part of Wrentham, Massachusetts, this historic farmhouse is among the finest homes in the community. Early records are sparse, but the dwelling appears to have been built in the first half of the 18th century by Joseph Grant and later expanded and inherited by other members of the Grant Family who owned the property in the mid-19th century and other nearby farms. Through the 19th century, the farm was owned by George Grant and later by his son, Charles Albert Grant. In the 20th century, the farm was owned by Wentworth and Anne Massie, who operated the property as an apple orchard, known as Kentuck Farm. The home has been restored by current owners and retains its large, central chimney, classical door surround, siding and windows.

Bowen-Haile Farmhouse // c.1680

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Possibly the oldest building in Warren, Rhode Island, this historic farmhouse on Market Street, near the state line, has framing that possibly dates to the 1680s! After Sachem Massasoit and his oldest son, Wamsutta, sold land to Plymouth Colony settlers what is present-day Warren, Barrington, Swansea and Rehoboth, Massachusetts, the town of Swansea was established in 1667. Obadiah Bowen (1627-1710) was an original proprietor of Swansea and was listed as number 23 in the order to draw lots for the meadows on the northside of town. By 1679, he received a ten-acre house lot of uplands and salt meadow, reaching from the Palmer River inland and across Market Street to the Birch Swamp.  He built a farmhouse on the rocky highland where he farmed the property until his death. His son, Thomas Bowen (1664-1743), later purchased the farm and added to it another 70 acres making the property a total of 170 acres. The old Bowen property was sold to Richard Haile in 1708 and remained in the Haile family until the late 19th century. After successive ownership in the Haile Family, the property became known as the “Judge Haile farm,” after owner, Levi Haile (1797-1854), a justice of the Supreme Court of Rhode Island, he served on the court that tried Thomas Dorr, the leader of the Dorr Rebellion, a struggle to extend voting rights in Rhode Island to non-property owners. Levi Haile made improvements on his house and farmed the land, as did his two sons. The property sold out of the Haile family in the late 19th century and remained a farm until the 1980s, when part of the property was subdivided for development and part donated to the Warren Land Trust, who maintains the property as the Haile Farm Preserve. While the farmland is protected, the old farmhouse is not protected as a town landmark nor through the community’s demolition delay bylaw.

Griffin-Malloy House // 1720

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This First Period Home on in Wayland, Massachusetts, can be found at 184 Glezen Lane and is one of the community’s oldest residences. The Griffin-Malloy Homestead dates to about 1720 and is a large, single-family farmhouse that is just over 300 years old! Records state that the house was built by early settler, Samuel Griffin and possibly expanded later by his son, Deacon Jonathan Griffin. After generations of Griffin Family ownership, the old farmhouse was purchased in 1877 by Timothy Malloy (1839-1909) an Irish immigrant who settled in Wayland and operated a farm here. The house as of the 20th century, retained much of its original wood paneled walls and fireplaces, and has been lovingly preserved by generations of great stewards. 

Benjamin Adams Farmhouse // 1775

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Benjamin Adams (1750-1843) was born in Milton, but relocated to East Sudbury (later renamed Wayland) and purchased property here from a Bezaleel Moore, a tanner and farmer. Soon after moving to town, in 1775, he mustered with the minutemen under the command of Capt. Nathaniel Cudworth. After the conclusion of the war, Benjamin married Elizabeth “Betsy” Adams and they expanded the old farmhouse (today at 34 Lincoln Road) and raised their children here. The property remained in the family until 1873 when it was purchased and operated as a dairy farm. In the 1920s, the farmhouse was expanded with Colonial Revival additions and a renovation for use as a summer residence and gentleman’s farm. It is believed that some of the interior wood paneling inside the house was added at this time and was salvaged from the Pequod Inn, which was razed around that time.

Osborne Homestead // c.1840

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This Greek Revival style farmhouse in Derby, Connecticut, was originally built around 1840, though little is known about its first occupants. In 1867, Wilbur Osborne (1841-1907), who owned and ran several industries in Derby, Ansonia and Bridgeport, and his wife, Ellen Lucy Davis, moved to the house, who together, also ran a dairy farm on their farmland. Their only daughter to survive to adulthood, Frances E. Osborne (1876-1956) took over the farm after her father’s death and became a prominent businesswoman. At age 16, Frances lost the vision in one eye due to an accident, and, as a result, never completed her public school education. Frances Osborne, in an era when women were denied leadership opportunities in the business world, succeeded through pure determination and an excellent business sense. Her achievements included becoming president of Union Fabric Company, vice president of Connecticut Clasp, and treasurer of the F. Kelly Company. She was also a founding partner of Steels and Busks of Leicester, England. She married Waldo Stewart Kellogg in 1919, and he took charge of the dairy, using selective breeding to make the herd “famous throughout New England for quality milk production.” Waldo and Frances Kellogg enlarged and remodeled the house to its current form between 1919 and 1925 adding wings and renovating the interiors in the Colonial Revival style. Waldo Kellogg died in 1928, but Frances stayed in the house until her death in 1956. Just before she died, she deeded her entire 350-acre (140 ha) estate, including Osbornedale, to the State of Connecticut. The state now operates the house and grounds as the Osborne Homestead Museum; the surrounding land comprises Osbournedale State Park.

Cyrus Colby Farmhouse // c.1826

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This historic farmhouse, tucked away on a quiet dead-end street in Bow, New Hampshire, is known as the Cyrus Colby Farmhouse. The residence dates to about 1826, and was likely built by Cyrus’ father, John Colby (1772-1836) and later inherited and occupied by his son, Cyrus. Cyrus Colby (1822-1900) lived at this house and farmed the land along the hillside and operated a successful family farm which included cornfields and grazing fields for their livestock with various barns on the property, notable for a post-and-beam dairy barn across the road that was built in 1878. The historic farm was purchased and restored, bringing the 200-year-old property a new life, suitable for modern living, while preserving the unique assemblage of farm buildings.

Upland Farmhouse // 1929

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The Nashoba Valley Winery in Bolton, Massachusetts, is one of Bolton’s most successful examples of the adaptation of an old agricultural property in the state. The land here was first developed as a farm in the early 19th century by Captain Martin Houghton (1779-1833). The farmland here, which has always had a scenic view, was called “Valley View Farm” later owner, William N. Felton (1835-1920). Sadly, the old farmhouse burned down in 1928, and the property was sold that year to Roy Clemens, an osteopathic doctor, who had this charming shingled cottage built in 1929. Roy and his wife, Laura, planted an apple orchard on the hills and named the property “Upland Farm”. Roy died in 1969 and Laura followed in 1981. With suburban development likely, the property was ultimately saved when it was purchased by Jack Partridge as the new home of the Nashoba Valley Winery, which was founded in Somerville in 1978. The winery specializes in fruit wines, and grows most of the fruits and berries for them on the property. The business expanded, adding a distillery, brewery and restaurant, and the beautiful grounds are often host to weddings and events.

Whitcomb Inn and Farm // c.1708

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The Whitcomb Inn and Farm in Bolton, Massachusetts, is believed to be the oldest extant building in the rural community and is believed to have been built around 1708. The oldest portion of the farmhouse, the three-bay, two-story, side-hall house, was likely built when David Whitcomb (1668-1730) acquired the land from his father. David married Mary Hayward in 1700 and the couple had many children, necessitating additions to the old farmhouse, including the rear saltbox with a “Beverly jog” (a section of the rear addition projecting beyond the side of the original structure) that was built in the 1710s. The building underwent stylistic changes in the 19th century, most of which were removed during a major restoration in 1937–38 by Philip Phillips, a Harvard professor in Archaeology, who drew the plans for the restoration of the old house and 1850s barn. Professor Phillips was also a conservationist, and donated some of his land, which directly abuts the highway (built in 1962) was donated to the town and is now known as Split-Rock Trail. The Old Whitcomb Inn and Farm was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002, ensuring that any future highway expansion or re-routing would require preservation of this significant home.

Captain Caleb Moore House // c.1795

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This stately Federal style residence constructed of brick sits atop a lovely hill in the town of Bolton, Massachusetts, and has been lovingly maintained by its owners for over 225 years. The home was built by Caleb Moore (1768-1826) just before his marriage to Achsah Whitney in 1796. Caleb was a merchant and later a shareholder and president of the Lancaster & Bolton Turnpike Corporation, chartered in 1805, to collect tolls for travellers from or to Boston from central Massachusetts. Caleb and Achsah had eight children, sadly, five of their children died as teenagers or young adults. The farmhouse was inherited by Alpheus Moore (1802-1882), who operated his late-father’s store and held a liquor license, possibly running the home as a tavern along the turnpike.

Captain Samuel Blood House // c.1793

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This grand federal-period house was built around 1793 by Capt. Samuel Blood (1749-1834), who had served in the American Revolution. He came to Bolton from Lancaster by 1788, and purchased a farm here, where he began working as a hat manufacturer, building a large shop where he made beaver and silk hats. The land As his business grew, his original house was demolished to make way for this more stately, Federal-period home which dates to around 1793. Samuel Blood and his wife, Lucretia (Heywood) had twelve children. Their eldest son, Thomas (1774-1848) became a doctor and settled in Peterborough, New Hampshire, but returned to Bolton to take charge of the factory as his father got older. The family sold the home and the property, then about 120-acres, operated as a farm by subsequent owners. In 1916, the property was sold to Howard Atwood, who had been a successful Boston wool merchant, and he raised pedigreed cattle, thoroughbred horses, and sheep on this property, possibly as a gentleman’s farm. He and his wife, Rose, built a large new barn near the main house where they held many parties and barn dances over the years. The couple also renovated the old house, adding the dormers, porticos and side additions, creating the current composition we see today. The property has been owned by a corporation and appears to be offices today.


Marie Hill Farmhouse // c.1810

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Located in the charming rural town of Andover, Vermont, the Marie Hill Farmhouse is one of the most interesting and charming residences in the area. Built around 1810, the brick farmhouse was designed in the Federal style, with a symmetrical five-bay facade, brick end chimneys, and a fanlight over the front door. The property was purchased by New Yorkers, Laurence Pfluger and his wife Mary “Marie” Pfluger, who operated the farm, raising dairy cows. Laurence would ship eggs, dairy and meat to his market in New York from this farm, which did quite well financially. The farmhouse was “modernized” by the turn of the 20th century with the addition of the two-story octagonal towers on the facade, front and side porches, along with the decorative slate spelling out “Marie Hill Farm” after his Marie Pflueger. The residence was later converted into a guesthouse, a use that remains to this day, still retaining the iconic name and branding in the southern gable.

Jaquith Homestead // c.1820

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Erected in the 1820s by Joshua Jaquith, a prosperous mill owner who operated a sawmill and grist mill on the river directly behind his house, this residence in Andover, Vermont, exemplifies vernacular Federal period residential architecture in rural New England. The residence is said to have been carved up inside into apartments in the mid-1800s but was restored by Alden Jaquith, the third generation of the family later in the 19th century back into a single-family residence. The handsome brick home is symmetrical with a five-bay facade, 12-over-12 sash windows, and large end chimneys. Of particular note are the relief arches above first floor windows and above the door and the attached sidelight windows.

Corbett House // c.1789

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The Corbett House is a charming Federal-period house in Westborough, Massachusetts, and was the birthplace of Henry W. Corbett, an important figure who helped develop Portland, Oregon in the 19th century. This house was built around 1789, the year that Henry’s parents, Elijah and Malinda Corbett, married. The property was farmed for years until Elijah Corbett began an axe manufacturing company here, becoming the first edge-tool manufacturer in Westborough. The rear ell was likely added in 1815 for this purpose. Elijah retired and the family sold the property in 1831 to Lawson Harrington, who continued the business until around the time of the Civil War. The Corbett family settled in New York, where Henry would engage in business. By the mid-19th century, westward expansion and opportunity took hold, and the Oregon Territory became a U.S. territory, leading Henry to establish business there, followed by many of his siblings. Corbett set sail from New York on the long voyage through the Straits of Magellan around Cape Horn up the Pacific Coast to Portland with $25,000 worth of goods to establish business in this new territory. Henry would become City Treasurer of Portland, member of the city council and chairman of the Republican Oregon State central committee. In 1867, he was elected as a Republican to the United States Senate, serving until 1873. Who would have guessed that this house in Westborough would have connections to the growth of Portland, Oregon!?