This vernacular, Federal period house on Union Street in Deep River, Connecticut, was built around 1825 for (and likely by) John Gladding. John worked in town as a joiner, a historic carpenter/woodworker, who either built houses or ships in the nearby Connecticut River. The Gladding House was likely originally built as a half cape, with a side hall entry and the two window bays to its left. As the family grew, the house was probably added onto to the right of the entry with the irregularly spaced bays. Houses like these that modestly grow and adapt to modernizations over time are what makes many New England villages great.
This house has a lot of history! Originally built around 1717 by Ephraim Sanders, this house on Franklin Street in Marblehead was later purchased by Thomas Gerry (1702-1774), a merchant who operated ships out of Marblehead, and father to Elbridge Gerry, the fifth Vice President of the United States. The home was likely a three-bay, side hall Georgian house and expanded to the current five-bay configuration by Thomas Gerry around 1750. Thomas Gerry was born in Derbyshire, England, but came to Marblehead by around 1730 and was active in local politics and had a leading role in the local militia, later speaking out against the Crown and sought independence. Thomas Gerry died in 1774, and did not get to see the Revolution nor his son become a Founding Father. The property was later the home of one of his granddaughters, Sarah Gerry Conklin, and her husband, Frederick Conklin, an infantry captain, who housed officers in command of nearby Fort Sewall during the War of 1812. In the 1940s, historical novelist Anya Seton after researching her genealogy, led her to base her 1948 novel, The Hearth and Eagle, on the history of the seaside town. She set the novel in the Hearth and Eagle Inn, based on the Gerry House here.
In 1820, Nathan Austin Fisher (1796-1851) purchased land along the Boston-Worcester Turnpike in Westborough, Massachusetts with the aim to build a home for his new wife, Susan T. Lothrop. By 1822, he had built a five-bay, center-hall Federal style estate house on the property and the couple began to raise their family. By 1826, Nathan and his brother-in-law, Joseph Lothrop, had opened a store in a section of Fisher’s house, which had been added for that purpose, presumably the western (left) three bays of the structure. Joseph Lothrop would build a Federal style residence on the opposite side of the turnpike that same year. When the railroad came to Westborough, turnpike traffic slowed, and the new rail line went through the center of town, bypassing the Fisher House and store, causing it to fail. Fisher and Nothrop would eventually leave Worcester County, and the property was sold numerous times until 1919, when this property was purchased by the Lyman School. The Fisher House became a residence for younger, special-needs boys to insulate them from the main population of Lyman, a reform school for the education and vocational training of wayward boys. In 1938, the house was converted back to a two-family home and used by families of Lyman School employees until the Lyman School closed in 1972, leaving the iconic Nathan Fisher House vacant for decades. After a failed attempt to convert the property into a house museum, the property was purchased by a local business, Release Well Being Center, and has been lovingly restored and maintained ever-since!
Located next to the colorful Wadleigh-Friend House on Highland Avenue in Somerville, the Dr. Thomas M. Durell House stands as a more academic example of the Colonial Revival style, but leaning more towards Arts and Crafts style than Queen Anne like its neighbor. This residence was built in 1897 for Dr. Thomas M. Durell, a Harvard-educated doctor and surgeon who, at the formation of the Tufts Medical School, was appointed Lecturer on Legal Medicine, and in 1895, was made Professor of that subject. Architects (and brothers) Edwin King Blaikie and William Everett Blaikie designed the residence for Dr. Durell along with a stable at the rear. While the house exhibits Colonial Revival detailing from the Palladian window and proportions, there are some Arts and Crafts style influences including the shed dormers, shingled siding, inset porches, and broad overhanging eaves with exposed rafters.
The most colorful house in Rockland, Massachusetts can be found on Union Street, the town’s busiest corridor, lined with houses and buildings of all ages and styles. The Lane-Bailey House was built in 1848 for Marshall Lane, a shoe manufacturer in town. The Greek Revival style residence features a gable roof oriented towards the street, which reads as a pediment and a full-length columned porch that wraps around the side of the home. The property was purchased in the early 20th century by William Andrew Grant Smith (1863-1908), a wealthy jeweler, who apparently added a second floor to the house, up from a 1-1/2 story cottage, and likely added the wrap-around porch at this time. Jumping ahead to the turn of the 21st century, the prominent house was owned by Brad and Sam Bailey, who painted the residence bold colors, added a wishing well and birdhouses to the front yard, and replaced the traditional grass lawn with crushed seashells. In an article talking about the house, Brad Bailey stated, “We do it because lots of things in life [that] are dull. Our house shouldn’t have to be.” Despite the polarizing thoughts and opinions from those who walk or drive by, the house is loved and certainly causes people to stop and smile!
This late example of a Federal style five-bay house is located at 78 Adams Street in Abington, Massachusetts. The house was constructed in 1832 for Joseph Cleverly (1797-1888), a shoe manufacturer who married Sally Gloyd, the daughter of a wealthy shoe manufacturer in town. Mr. Cleverly built the adjacent stable and shop where he held his horses and manufactured his products. The vernacular barn/shop is a rare survivor of the type and is a visual representation as to the importance of shoe manufacturing for the town of Abington.
This modified Federal style cottage in Abington, Massachusetts, is known locally as the last home of World Heavyweight Champion bare knuckle boxer, John L. Sullivan. John Sullivan (1858-1918) died in this house on February 2, 1918, of heart disease, but left behind a legacy that will last forever. The house was originally constructed around 1812 for Jacob Cobb, a Deacon of a local church and after successive ownership, the house was purchased by boxer John Sullivan, to celebrate his retirement. As a professional fighter Sullivan was nicknamed The Boston Strongboy, and was one of the first great American boxers and was the last world champion bare-knuckle boxer. He had a record of 47 wins, 1 loss and 2 draws, with 38 wins by knockout in his career. Sullivan’s blustering personality and fabled strength gained him a great following, and he would be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame as part of its original class. As champion he earned more than $1 million but squandered it. A hard drinker during his ring career, he later became an advocate of prohibition and delivered many lectures on the subject. His brick Federal house in Abington was modernized by him, adding the dormer and full-length front porch supported by rubblestone columns.
The Captain John Clark Housein Canterbury, Connecticut, is one of the finest examples of the Federal style of architecture in New England, and has remained in a fine state of preservation since its construction in the early 19th century. The house was built by 1802 for John Clark (1731-1834), who purchased an earlier home on the site from and had it either taken down or enlarged to its present appearance. The mansion is symmetrical with five bays, central entry and twin chimneys projecting through the hipped roof. The central bay is a showstopper with its triangular pediment at the roofline containing a fanlight, Palladian window at the second floor, and main entrance with its own pediment, sidelights, fanlight transom, all framed by two-story columns. The house’s south facade is equally beautiful with its own Palladian window and entrance.
Behold, one of the finest, and well-preserved Greek Revival style homes in Salem. This is the Payson-Fettyplace House on Winter Street, built in 1845 with its gable facing the street to create a pediment, a wide entablature and cornice, and pilasters on the flushboard façade, which together make the building read more like a Greek temple than a residential home. The residence was built for Edward H. Payson, a bank officer, and his wife, Amelia, who lived in the home for only two years before moving into a larger residence across the street just two years after this house was completed. The property was sold to a Carleton Dole of Maine and again sold in 1850 to Thomas J. Fettyplace. The Fettyplace family were based out of Marblehead and many of them relocated to Mobile, Alabama, to make money in the cotton and shipping industry in the South. Thomas purchased this home in Salem for his mother who spent her final years here until 1861. After the Civil War, the Fettyplace brothers would move back north and this home remained in the family until 1912. The house is now a bed & breakfast known as the Amelia Payson House, named after the original owner.
Buildings of New England 