Georgian Home

Maxwell House // c.1755

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The Maxwell House in Warren, Rhode Island, is a striking example of mid-18th-century colonial architecture and one of the oldest brick dwellings in the waterfront town. Built before 1755, the house is one of the finest brick Georgian-era residences in New England with its characteristic Flemish bond brickwork, fieldstone foundation, wood-frame gable ends, and massive central chimney that anchors its historic pre-Revolutionary form. Originally constructed for the Reverend Samuel Maxwell (1688-1778) and later home to members of the Maxwell family, prominent shipowners, merchants, and slave-owners in town. The Maxwell family’s wealth was tied to the maritime economy of the era, which tells the story of many Rhode Island merchants of the time, who participated in the trans-Atlantic slave trade that enriched local elites and shaped the region’s economic growth, a history that communities are increasingly confronting alongside preservation efforts to this day. Today, the Maxwell House serves as a house museum preserved by the Massasoit Historical Association, who (hopefully) share the full story of the house, from its architecture to funding to construct it.

Hill-Collins House // 1761

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Located at the corner of Water and Baker streets in Warren, Rhode Island, this Georgian Colonial-era home oozes charm! Built by shipwright William Hill, as a three bay, two storied residence in 1761, this Colonial “half-house” was later owned by mariner William Collins who managed a wharf nearby. The home was later inherited by his son, Capt. Haile Collins (1798-1863). The two-story house with three-bay-façade and side-hall entry is a great example of a Georgian residence with raised stone foundation with entry accessed by double-run brownstone steps, massive central chimney, and the pedimented entry with transom and pilastered enframement. The home was eventually covered with asphalt shingle siding and was threatened with demolition in the 1980s until it was purchased and restored by Lombard John Pozzi, a prominent local force in architecture and historic preservation, who restored many old houses in the region.

Rufus Barton House // c.1783

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This charming house on Broad Street in Warren, Rhode Island, was built by 1783 for Rufus Barton and his wife, Prudence Cole. Rufus Barton and his family moved to New York and sold the property to Nathan Burr for $775 in 1797, who . Nathan Miller Burr sold the home to William Eastabrook two years later. Captain Eastabrook/Easterbrook had just returned from an illegal slave voyage on the “Betsey” to Africa that resulted in the enslavement of 79 Africans who were sold into slavery in Havana. He would go on to captain at least two more illegal voyages on the “Little Ann” (1806) and the “Hannah” (1807) from Bristol. These three voyages accounted for the death or enslavement of 229 people. The home has been lovingly restored by later owners, who removed the vinyl siding and replaced the cheap, vinyl windows with historically appropriate windows.

Governor Josias Lyndon House // c.1767

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One of the more significant old homes in Warren, Rhode Island, the Gov. Josias Lyndon House on the aptly named Lyndon Street, dates to 1767 or earlier, and has connections with a colonial governor. It is not clear who originally owned this property, but the residence is best-known for its most famous resident, Governor Josias Lyndon (1704-1778), who lived here during the final years of his life with his wife and enslaved Africans. Lyndon worked as Clerk of the Assembly for the colony and in 1768, he was appointed Rhode Island’s last Colonial Governor, serving until 1769. His election is believed to have been a compromise between Samuel Ward and Stephen Hopkins, both of whom had already served multiple terms as governor. After his one term, Lyndon declined reelection and served as chief clerk for the General Assembly of the Superior Court of the County of Newport. At the time of the British occupation of Aquidneck Island (Newport), Gov. Lyndon moved to this home in Warren, where he remained until his death from smallpox in 1778. An often undertold fact about Josias Lyndon is that he enslaved a man named Caesar Lyndon. Caesar was highly literate and was entrusted to carry out Lyndon’s business, acting as both a purchasing agent and secretary. Caesar also held his own small lending business with enslaved as well as free Blacks and whites borrowing money from him. Josias allowed Caesar to marry, which he did to Sarah Searing. It is not clear if/when Caesar was granted his freedom, or if he accompanied Josias to Warren or remained in Newport.

Easterbrooks House // 1757

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One of the pre-Revolutionary homes in the picturesque town of Warren, Rhode Island, the Easterbrooks House on Church Street is definitely one of the smallest, but oozes charm. This one-and-a-half-story gambrel roofed cottage stands across from the Town Common and adjacent to what may be the tallest building in town, the First Methodist Church of Warren. The home was built by 1757, likely by William Easterbrooks (1731-1772), and by the time of the Revolution, was occupied by Ms. Nellie Easterbrooks (1761-1853). Nellie and her mother rented a room in their home to Warren schoolmaster, John Holland, who earned the nickname “Traitor Holland”, after he had secretly been sharing news to General Pigot, the British General in charge of forces in Rhode Island. Long thought to have supported the local Patriots, it was learned that he was a loyalist, after the British and Hessian soldiers raided Warren and were leaving the town in 1778. It is said that troops stopped at this house and John Holland accompanied them, cheering alongside and leaving with them. He was never seen in Warren again. Soon after this, a young Nellie Easterbrooks, then in her teens, sought revenge against the British who pillaged and assaulted her friends and family. As the troops were leaving, she is said to have gathered a group of other angry Patriot ladies of town and captured a drunken drummer marching through town. Then they dragged their bewildered captive into a nearby hotel and locked him into a closet there. Nellie would later marry Nathaniel Hicks West (1751-1836), a Revolutionary War veteran, and received a widows pension until her death in 1853. The Easterbrooks House is a rare, intact surviving Georgian home that tells a rich history of Colonial New England and the stories during the American Revolution.

Ye Olde Manse of Willington // c.1728

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Known locally as the ‘Ye Olde Manse‘, this stunning Georgian cape house is located at the eastern edge of the town green in Willington, Connecticut. Thought to be the oldest extant house in the small, rural community, the gambrel-roofed homestead was possibly built by John Watson of Hartford, who was thought to have been an original proprietor of Willington, but was instead an assignee of George Clark who was. In the 19th century, the homestead operated as the congregational church parsonage. Today, the Georgian cape house with gambrel and saltbox roof is a single family home and has been lovingly preserved by centuries of stewards of this old manse.

Lillibridge Farmhouse // c.1770

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Located in northern Willington, CT, this farmhouse on a quiet, country road, dates to before the Revolutionary War! David Lillibridge (1744-1831) of Exeter, Rhode Island, served from 15 to 17 in the French and Indian War, and manned Fort Stanwix. In 1767, when he was a lieutenant in his local militia, he converted, and entered the Baptist ministry. In 1777, he purchased a farm from Moses Holmes, but it is unclear if this residence was existing or if he built this large farmhouse. In Willington, David Lillibridge became a farmer-preacher, establishing a Baptist ministry here. The home remained in the Lillibridge family at least until the 1870s, when it was owned by Burnham Lillibridge. The Georgian saltbox residence is set back from the street and sits upon the bucolic rolling fields of the property.

Grout-Heard House // c.1743

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The Grout-Heard House on Cochituate Road in Wayland, Massachusetts, is one of the oldest extant residences in the community and architecturally significant as it shows the evolution of architectural tastes throughout the centuries. The house was built around 1743 for Jonathan Grout (1701-1748), a grandson of an original settler in the area, by the time of his marriage to Hannah Heard in 1743. Early records suggest that the house was originally just one bay deep and two-stories tall with a central entry. The property was sold in 1744 to Richard Heard, Jonathan’s brother in-law. In 1787, Silas Grout (1755-1820), a blacksmith, purchased the house and likely added rooms on the rear of the house. In 1822, Silas’ descendants added the side ell and the residence became a double-house in the mid-19th century. The house was moved from the site to make room for the 1870s Town Hall, and the rounded two-story side bay was added. After the Town Hall was razed in the 1950s, the Grout-Heard house was moved back to its original site in 1962. Since that date the Grout-Heard House has been the offices, research center, artifact repository and house museum of the Wayland Historical Society, who added a two-story Modern addition at the rear.

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.

John Sprague House // 1785

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Judge John Sprague (1740-1800) was a Harvard graduate and settled in Lancaster, Massachusetts as one of only three lawyers in Worcester County following the departure of his Tory colleagues during the Revolution. From this, a young Sprague climbed the professional ladder quickly and represented Lancaster in the General Court beginning in 1782 and occasionally sat in the Senate. He was first appointed judge in 1784 and in 1798 became chief justice of the Court of Common Pleas for Worcester County. After being appointed a judge in 1784, Sprague purchased a house lot on Main Street in Lancaster and hired local housewrights Eli Stearns and Jonathan Whitney, to design and build this stately home. Judge Sprague moved from his 1771 house a short distance away, to this more substantial late-Georgian home with projecting entry with pilasters and pediment. After his death in 1800, the property was inherited by his daughter, Ann Sprague Vose and her husband, a merchant, Peter Thatcher Vose.