Gambrel Roof

Samuel Tarbell Ames House // c.1890

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The Samuel Tarbell Ames House is a large, gambrel-roofed house located in New Ipswich, New Hampshire. The residence was built in 1890 for its namesake, Samuel Tarbell Ames (1810-1897), who was eighty years old when it was completed. Mr. Ames was a Boston businessman who summered in New Ipswich, as his wife was Mary Hartwell Barr, a daughter of Dr. James Barr, who lived in town. The house then passed to Samuel’s son, James Barr Ames (1846-1910), who was an Assistant Professor and Dean of the Harvard Law School, who took a great interest in Appleton Academy, serving as Trustee, and his widow donated this house to the Academy in 1912, after his death. The Ames House then served as a boarding house for teachers and students until it reverted to private ownership.

Boothbay Harbor Bridge House // 1902

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In 1901, a footbridge was built in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, connecting the downtown area with the Mt. Pisgah and Spruce Point areas, which both developed as summer colonies. Within a year, this bridge house was built and occupied by William Foster, the bridge-tender who likely operated some sort of swing to allow vessels to pass by until the footbridge was largely replaced after the Great Freeze of 1918, without a swing or draw. When Mr. Foster operated the footbridge, others in town suspected some wrongdoing. A local selectman began investigating and as the story goes, Mr. Foster had been smuggling liquor into town via ships to this bridge house through a trap-door in the floor of the building. Maine was a dry state, and William would have been able to bring in illegal alcohol to the town. Later uses of the building included a candy shop, gift shop, and the bridge house is now a private residence, with thousands passing by every summer.

Gott House // 1702

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Halibut Point State Park in Rockport is one of the most enchanting places in Massachusetts and it has so many layers of history! Before white settlement, Halibut Point was used seasonally by the Pawtucket people who came to harvest its wild fruits, fish and game on the land. In 1702, Samuel Gott (1677-1748) purchased eight of the 6-acre lots on Halibut Point. At the time, there were no roads to Halibut Point, but Samuel built this house on the land, and he began to farm here. The property passed down the family line and was later owned by Joshua (1754-1846), who came of age just as the War for Independence began. Joshua enlisted with the Revolutionary Army as it was being formed in Boston, and in 1776, he joined General Washington’s forces in the unsuccessful defense of New York. He returned home to lead a long and useful life as farmer and fisherman and was known as Captain Gott. As of the 2010s, the property remained in the same family, handed down through the generations from Samuel Gott over 320 years to today. How cool!

Wellman-Fisher-Richardson House // c.1745

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The Fisher-Richardson House in Mansfield, Massachusetts is considered to be one of the oldest buildings in the suburban town. The home dates to sometime between 1743 and 1751 and was built for its original owner Ebenezer Wellman (1720-1776). The property was eventually owned by Lemuel Fisher, who in about 1800, doubled the size of the house adding its western half. When Lemuel died in 1820, the property was inherited by his youngest son, Daniel, a farmer and blacksmith who also built a gristmill nearby. The home was later inherited by Daniel’s daughter, Evelina and her husband, Captain Ira Richardson. By 1930, the gambrel-roofed Georgian house was in disrepair, and the owner at the time contacted SPNEA (now Historic New England) who drafted an agreement to acquire and restore the house. However, as local interest in the property increased, the owner deeded the property to the town, and the town took on the costs of restoration. The property is now managed by the Mansfield Historical Society.

Harkness House // c.1730

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The award for the cutest house in Newport goes to this c.1730 beauty on Green Street! This charming Georgian cape house sits just one-and-a-half stories tall under a squat gambrel roof. The house was originally located at the corner of Thames Street and was moved at least twice until it was placed on its present site by the Newport Restoration Foundation, after they acquired it in 1983, restoring it soon after. The center-hall house has just two rooms on each floor with a central staircase and chimney. The small dormers add some light to the second floor without compromising the historic and architectural integrity of the cottage.

McCrea Cottage // 1891

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In 1891, Laura Denby McCrea, a wealthy widow based Philadelphia, sought to maintain her social standing all year by building a summer cottage on Grindstone Neck, a summer colony in Winter Harbor, Maine. She was one of the first to build a cottage here, and she hired renowned architect Wilson Eyre to furnish plans for the rustic home. The Shingle style house is dominated by its massive gambrel roof and was historically clad entirely with wood shingles (asphalt shingles have since replaced cedar at the roof).

Wibird-Oracle House // 1702

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One of the oldest extant houses in Portsmouth (and New England for that matter) is this gambrel-roofed Georgian house on Marcy Street. The home was originally constructed in 1702 by Richard Wibird, who arrived to Portsmouth in the late-1600s and married Elizabeth Due (Dew) in 1701. Mrs. Due owned a market in town, and that helped propel Richard to be a prosperous merchant. Like many very wealthy residents in New England at the time, he enslaved three Africans and had five properties all over town. The house was moved two times, it was originally built behind the North Meetinghouse on Market Square. It was moved from that location c.1800 to Haymarket Square where Prescott Park is now, and again in 1937 to its present location on Marcy Street. The Portsmouth Oracle, an early newspaper, was printed and edited from this building when it was altered for commercial spaces at the ground floor. The Prescott sisters who developed Prescott Park had the foresight to move this building to the opposite corner and the home was later restored, giving us a glimpse at early 18th century merchant housing.

Nathaniel Backus House // c.1702

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Welcome to Franklin, Connecticut, which frankly (pun intended) I had never heard of before driving through it not long ago! The town is located in New London County and was originally a part of Norwich, Connecticut and was called West Farms village. The town incorporated in 1786, creating its own town at that time, and the citizens decided to name their new town after Benjamin Franklin. I wonder if there are more place names in the United States after Benjamin Franklin or George Washington…

This is one of the oldest houses in the sleepy town of Franklin, and it was built around 1702 by Nathaniel Backus, about the same time he was married to his wife, Elizabeth. The Georgian Cape house features a large gambrel roof and a small gabled dormer. The house is representative of many of the earliest homes which once existed in this landscape in the early 18th century. The home appears to have been vacant for some time, and in 2022, was auctioned off. Its future is unclear at this time sadly.

Ernest Zeiss House // 1897

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Another eclectic house in Waban is this beauty, a blending of Queen Anne and Colonial Revival styles under an impressive gambrel roof. The home was occupied by Ernest L. Zeiss, a salesman. Waban, which was once a neighborhood within the reach of the middle-class, has since become one of the most desirable neighborhoods in one of the most exclusive towns in the Boston metro. It is safe to say an ordinary 9-5 salesman would not be able to afford a house like this today!

Alexander Watts House // c.1755

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In 1748, Alexander Watts, a merchant and sea captain purchased land in Marblehead, building a dwelling house, shop, and barn. This home was likely built in the 1750s, not long after he purchased the lot from David LeGallais, a merchant and prominent landowner in town. The gambrel-roofed Georgian house with its elaborate entry stands out on the street for its large frontage, with many other period homes sited on narrow lots, with the side of the house facing the street. He likely lived in the shop nextdoor until he had enough money to build this separate, more elaborate dwelling. Captain Watts died in 1772, and the property was willed to his “wife Rachel for her widowhood, and at her decease, one-half was to descend to her heirs, and the other half to his kinsman, Alexander Watts of London, England”. By the 1780s, the property was noted as “much decayed” with his widow likely struggling to maintain the property, renting the shop to others for income. On April 13, 1795, the estate was divided, meaning Rachel, Alexander’s widow, likely died at the home.