This cute little building was built around 1864 according to public records, as a cobbler (shoe repair) shop in Hollis, New Hampshire. The building, on Main Street, is located adjacent to the former Gates house and was used as his workshop for shoe repairs. The building was used for various purposes until the early 20th century when it was converted to a vehicular garage. The building was restored sometime after WWII and converted to a workshop/study by the owner, bringing the building back to its former glory, though altered. The building, seemingly balancing on stones from the photo, adds much to the pleasant streetscape of Main Street in Hollis.
Located in a triangular island at the corner of Main Street and Monument Square in the charming town of Hollis, NH, the Always Ready Engine House is a two-story clapboarded building with a lower level exposed on the east end due to the sloping site. The simple Greek Revival-style building is capped by a low-pitched gable roof and is outlined by simple pilaster cornerboards. The building was constructed in 1859 by the Town and furnished by the local fire company. Initially the building was kept for the exclusive use of the engine company but in 1862 the Soldiers’ Aid Society was granted permission to meet here. In 1877 the building was altered to accommodate the Town Hearse and in 1878 part of the basement was fitted as a local police lock-up and tramp shelter. The fire department finally vacated the structure in 1950 and the building served as the police station from 1971 to 1987. It was given to the Hollis Historical Society shortly after who hold documents, objects and photos which display the history of the town inside.
This stunning Federal home in Hollis, NH was built around 1800 for Josiah Conant, likely as a wedding gift to his new wife, Lucy. Conant was a cabinetmaker by trade and his shop was located across the street, and according to local sources, he used his woodworking skills on the inside and out of his home, with intricate details including mantels, wainscoting and exterior cornice. Half of the second floor was originally a dance hall and was later used for a reading or writing school school run by Lucy. The brick-end Federal home features a Palladianesque entry with sidelights and an arched transom with historic windows!
This house on a prominent lot opposite the Town Green in Hollis, NH, was constructed in 1794 for Reverend Eli Smith (1760-1847). In 1794, Rev. Smith married Ama Emerson, the daughter of Rev. Daniel Emerson, then the minister of the Congregational Church in Hollis. After Rev. Emerson’s death, Eli Smith took over the church and became the second minister of the town. Eli’s brother Andrew, a skilled carpenter, is said to have built the stunning Georgian house. After his death in 1847, the property was subdivided and another home was constructed, likely for a member of the family, while Joseph Emerson, one of Eli’s sons lived in the former family home. It remains one of the best-preserved late 18th century homes in the area.
One of the oldest extant homes (and one of my favorites) in Hollis, NH is this charming gambrel-roofed Georgian built in 1768. The home was built for Deacon Daniel Emerson Jr., the son of Reverend Daniel Emerson, who was the first minister in Hollis (his home was the last post). Besides serving as the Deacon for the Congregational Church, Daniel Jr. (1746-1820) also was Coroner and High Sheriff of Hillsborough County. He was Captain of the Hollis Company that went to Ticonderoga in July 1776 returning a year later. The home retains the massive central chimney, a common feature in older homes, to radiate heat to the entire home from the central heat source.
The oldest extant building in the village center of Hollis, New Hampshire is the Emerson House, which overlooks the town green. The home was constructed in 1744 for Reverend Daniel Emerson, the first settled minister in Hollis. The home stands on land that was part of the 40-acre ministerial parcel set aside when the town was planned that year. Over the next 21 years, Reverend Emerson and his wife had 13 children (seven sons and six daughters) which caused them to expand the home numerous times until his death in 1801. The home remained in the Emerson family for some years until it was sold at some point in the 20th century when the home was modified with the storefront windows. It now houses apartment units.
Samuel Cummings (1709-1772) married Prudence Lawrence (1715-1796) and moved to Hollis, NH from Groton, MA. The couple had a home built in town and raised at least four children, Samuel Jr., Mary, Sibbel, and Prudence. The original house built by Cummings was a single-story, four room, center chimney type. After his death in 1772, the property passed to Cummings’ son, Samuel Cummings, Jr., an acknowledged Tory. Interestingly, Samuel’s sister Prudence was an ardent patriot, who moved to Pepperell, MA and married a militia man, David Wright. While the Revolutionary War was raging, Prudence visited her brother in the old family home, when she overheard her brother Samuel talk to his friend, a British army officer about passing information to the British. Prudence returned to Pepperell and gathered the women of the town. Then a 35-year-old mother of five, she organized 30 or 40 of them into a militia called ‘Mrs. David Wright’s Guard.’ The women dressed in their husbands’ clothes and carried whatever they could for weapons. As the men had probably taken muskets with them, the women probably used farm implements such as pitchforks. The women patrolled the roads leading into town. The group eventually captured two British soldiers on horseback and let them go only once they agreed to never come back to the colony. Due to this event, Prudence never spoke to her loyalist brother again.
In the 1850s, the house was owned by Superintendent of Schools, Levi Abbott and his wife, Matilda. It was the Abbotts who reportedly added a second story to the house with a hip roof, cornice and corner pilasters, giving it the appearance we see today.
Perched atop a hill at the edge of the town common in Strafford, Vermont, the Strafford Town House epitomizes rural New England charm. The town house was constructed in 1799 by local carpenters as a place to do public business and served for a brief period in the early days as a meeting house for various local congregations. The building is one of the oldest meeting houses in Vermont and was one of the first meeting houses to put the entrance at the tower-end and the pulpit at the other end of the building. The change from a side-entrance orientation reflected a time when New Englanders were clearly deciding to separate their political business from their ecclesiastical affairs.
Charles C. Perry (1795-1870) was a wealthy nineteenth-century shipowner and sea captain and a prominent figure within Southport’s community. After his father’s death in 1814, when Charles was just 25, he inherited a large sum of money from his father’s will and followed his footsteps as a career. Miah Perry’s will stipulated that in order to keep the family together, members were to reside at the family home for five years from his death if neither of the daughters married; “but in case they remain unmarried at the expiration of five years…my estate shall not be divided until eight years from my decease unless one of the said daughters should marry…partition may be immediately thereafter made.” Talk about pressure to get married!
It is unclear if any daughters got married before, (Julia, one daughter died in 1821 at 22 years old). That same year, Charles Perry seemingly got his part of the inheritance and acquired the land upon which this house stands. He was then twenty-six years old and unmarried. He appears to have built it later as a blending of the Federal and Greek Revival styles, perfectly complimenting each other.
One of the nicest examples of residential Greek Revival architecture I have ever seen is the Austin Perry House (c.1830) in the Southport area of Fairfield, CT. Austin Perry (1798-1864) was a member of a prominent merchant family, holding businesses in Fredericksburg, Virginia, before returning to Southport to manage a general store. He retired in his forties and resided at this home until his death. His home is a balanced, symmetrical design with massive Corinthian columns surmounted by a carved anthemion motif ornamenting the gable pediment.
Buildings of New England 