Old House Blog

Stanwood-Upham-Prescott House // c.1790

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Federal period houses like the Stanwood-Upham House at 199 Middle Street in Portsmouth, do not need the frills and detailing of later Victorian styles, in this case, less can definitely be more! This residence was built around 1790 for William Stanwood (1746-1827), a wig-maker, merchant and Revolutionary War veteran. After his death, the property was acquired by Timothy Upham (1783–1855), who himself was a veteran in the War of 1812, who at the Siege of Fort Erie, led the regiment to rescue General James Miller. After the war, he was appointed as Collector of Customs at Portsmouth, and engaged in politics before moving to Charlestown, living there until his death in 1855. The residence was later-owned by sisters, Mary Elizabeth and Josephine Fitts Prescott, who purchased the property from inheritance of their late-brother, merchant, Charles William Prescott. The residence has a five-bay symmetrical facade with center entrance with pediment and fanlight transom, slate roof, and twin chimneys.

Captain Benjamin Damrell House // c.1812

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The people and buildings of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, have always been closely tied to the sea. Many old houses and commercial buildings here were built for merchants, ship builders, sea captains, and fishermen, who made their living from the charming port town. This historic house at 333 Marcy Street in the Downtown area of Portsmouth, was built around 1812 for Benjamin Damrell (1781-1821) a sea captain, privateer during the War of 1812, and member of the Portsmouth Marine Society and Alert Fire Society of Portsmouth, a volunteer fire fighting group. Captain Damrell died in 1821 while at sea and his property was inherited by his widow, Lucy, who appears to have remained here for some time, raising their daughter.

Delano Warehouse and Wharf // 1803

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In 1802, Kingston-based merchants and landowners Benjamin Delano and brother-in-law Peter Winsor built this stone wharf and warehouse at Rocky Nook, a small peninsula at the end of the Jones River where it meets Plymouth Bay. The Rocky Nook had several warehouses in the early 1800’s which were used to hold cargo for the busy Kingston vessels that carried passengers and goods all down the eastern seaboard for transit, with larger vessels sent to the West Indies for trade. Benjamin Delano and his son Joshua either owned or partly owned 37 vessels between 1803 and 1882 and were a wealthy family that built their fortune on shipbuilding and trade. The warehouse, built at the end of the wharf was used to store goods and also served as a ship chandlery, a store selling goods needed for newly outfitted ships that were berthed up the Jones River.  A combination of the coming of the railroad and the need for faster and bigger vessels caused the decline of the shipping business in Kingston in the late 19th century with the shipbuilding industry largely evaporating by the 20th century. The Delano warehouse at the end of the wharf has since been converted to a private residence yet retains its unique character and siting with arguably the best view in town. 

William Sever House // 1755

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The William Sever House is an architecturally and historically significant residence in the town center of Kingston, Massachusetts. A prosperous merchant, owner of ships involved in coastal and international trade and member of the colony’s House of Representatives, William Sever (1729-1809) was prepared to erect a home of appropriate status when he married his cousin, Sarah Warren, in 1755. Sever joined his father Nicholas Sever’s commercial shipping business after graduating from Harvard College in 1745 and in 1754, was elected to the Massachusetts Bay Colony’s House of Representatives. In 1769, Squire Sever was elected to the Governor’s Council, a position he held until 1774 when he joined the Provincial Congress. Due to his experience and seniority, Sever was appointed to head the Congress and was declared “President of Massachusetts” and endowed with the governor’s executive powers. After his death in 1809, the house remained in the Sever family for generations, including as a summer residence for James W. Sever, the namesake of Sever Hall at Harvard University. The residence is well-preserved and showcases the telescoping nature of some of these early Colonial-era properties, with the main house adjoined by a barn and carriage house and diminutive ells and was thoroughly documented in the 1930s through the Historic American Buildings Survey, with detailed drawings, plans, and photographs of the exterior and interior spaces. 

Samuel J. Nutter House // c.1750

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The Samuel J. Nutter House on Indian Pond Road in Kingston, Massachusetts, is a fairly rare example of a half-cape Georgian-era home in New England. Local history states that the house dates to before the American Revolution and was constructed as an early half-cape, with an off-center door flanked by two bays of windows. The small house form would allow the owner to add on additional bays to make it a 3/4- (has a door with two windows on one side and a single window on the other) or full-cape (with a central door and two windows on each side) as the family and prosperity grew. This house was built as a half-cape and has not changed in its over 275-year existence, besides the addition of a barn and one-story connecting addition to it. The house was originally located elsewhere in town, but was relocated to the site in about 1830 by Samuel Nutter (born Nutt and changed his name in 1825), who married Mercy Washburn that year. The Nutter Family farmed here until the early 1900s.

Bildad Washburn Tavern // c.1774

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This stately Georgian style house on Main Street in Kingston, Massachusetts, was originally built in nearby Marshfield and later moved to its current location just decades later. The house was built on the Winslow estate in Marshfield in about 1774 by either Dr. Isaac Winslow or his brother, Maj Pelham Winslow. In 1796, the property was purchased by Bildad Washburn, a noted gravestone carver, and the house was moved to its present site. Reports state that the house was moved by boat and oxcart to its current location, where it became a tavern and residence of Mr. Washburn. In 1804, the house was sold to Major George Russell, a merchant and town clerk, who later served in the War of 1812, who converted the ell into a store where he sold, East and West India goods from his ships. After his death, his daughter ran a dame’s school from the house. The Washburn Tavern is significant as a large Georgian-era house that remains in a great state of preservation.

Higgins-Little House // 1890

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This “painted lady” on Roslin Street is one of the many fine Queen Anne Victorian houses in the Ashmont Hill neighborhood in Dorchester, Massachusetts. The residence was built in 1890 for original owner, Lewis H. Higgins, a master mariner who was born in Wellfleet before moving to Boston. Higgins seemingly resided here with his family for a short time until the house was sold in 1893 to Samuel and Grace Little. The house is perched on a hill and features a prominent rounded corner tower. The original porch with turned posts and gable detailing stand out with the intricate paint scheme used to highlight all of the amazingly preserved ornamentation. While paint schemes like these are not historic, they do bring joy to owners and passersby, and help viewers appreciate the care that these stewards take in maintaining their old homes.

Mary E. C. Bates House // c.1894

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One of the many spectacular Queen Anne style houses in the Ashmont Hill neighborhood of Dorchester (Boston) is this c.1894 residence at 53 Ocean Street. The house was built for Mary Elizabeth (Cushing) Bates and her husband, Henry L. Bates. Henry worked as a bookkeeper and the couple was able to afford a house lot in the fashionable Ashmont area of Dorchester, and had this home built. In the early 20th century, the couple purchased a then-vacant lot next-door at 57 Ocean Street, and had the current house there built, renting it out for years for supplemental income. Hallmarks of the Queen Anne style seen in the Bates house include: varied siding types, large porch supported by turned posts, asymmetry, projecting bay window, and applied ornament seen here in the gable.

Hattie Furbush House // 1888

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Located next to the Harrison Henry Atwood House on Alban Street in the Ashmont Hill neighborhood of Dorchester, this stately home with a broad, gambrel roof oriented to face the street was also built by the architect and neighbor, Harrison H. Atwood. Appointed City Architect of Boston in 1889, Atwood designed schools, firehouses, and other public buildings, and just before this, designed a number of homes, primarily in the Shingle and Queen Anne styles in Ashmont. While he specialized in Victorian styles, Atwood was well-versed in the Colonial Revival style, as evidenced here. Built in 1888, this stunning house was constructed for owner, Harriett “Hattie” Dinsmore Furbush (1862-1950), who was an active member in a local organization, the Ashmont Tourists Club, a women’s social club devoted to talking books, travel, and life. The club often met in the library of Ms. Furbush’s home, which likely migrated out to the gorgeous enclosed porch with its multi-light windows.

Mumford House // 1877

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Set back behind a manicured lawn on the charming Alban Street in the Ashmont Hill neighborhood of Dorchester, this Victorian era residence was both a family home as well as a finishing school for young ladies. The house at 35 Alban Street was completed in 1877 for the Reverend Thomas James Mumford, pastor of the Third Church of Dorchester and anti-slavery advocate, who died the year his home was completed. His widow, Elizabeth Goodrich Warren Mumford (1834-1897) would inherit the home from her husband and for supplemental income to maintain the home, she opened the Mrs. Mumford’s Finishing School for Young Ladies, a school to educate and teach young girls manners and religion. Elizabeth Mumford would also publish books on how to conduct classes for Sunday School, Kindergarten, and the home. The Mumford House is a great example of a Stick style residence with less exuberance than some other examples. The picket frieze, applied stickwork on the siding, and more ornate porch are all typical of the style. 

Mary S. Hartford House // 1890

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This charming Shingle style bungalow at the corner of Harley and Walton streets in Dorchester’s Ashmont Hill neighborhood, was built around 1890 for Ms. Mary S. Hartford. Mary Hartford (1840-1910) was the mother of famed American painter, Edmund Charles Tarbell, and the wife of Edmund Whitney Tarbell, who died in 1863 after contracting typhoid fever while serving in the Civil War. After the death of her husband, Mary sent her son to live in Groton, Massachusetts with his grandparents to raise them as she remarried to David Francis Hartford, a shoe manufacturer. David and Mary lived nearby on Alban Street, and rented this and other houses to tenants for supplemental income. Local architect Edwin J. Lewis furnished plans for the house as a prototypical example of the Shingle style. Mary died in 1910 and in 1917, David Hartford, as his wife’s executor, deeded this property at 17 Harley Street to Emma C. Rich, the wife of George M. Rich, a Boston banker. The house is excellently preserved, even down to the appropriate brown stained shingles.

Captain John Stacey House // 1731

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In 1731, Captain John Stacey, a merchant and shipowner in Marblehead, had this gambrel-roofed house built on family land. Due to its orientation from the main street, a passageway allowed access to the rear of the property where other buildings were constructed by the family. By 1850, the house was jointly owned by Hawkes and Brown, with Mr. Hawkes operating a store in the first floor corner room. Eventually, by 1912, Brown had bought the whole building and moved his meat market into the store in this building. The property was later purchased and restored by Donald Mackenze Stacey (1916-1998), a contractor and descendant of the home’s original owner, John Stacey. Donald was a veteran of the U.S. Navy and served in World War II, before moving back to Marblehead and worked in the building trade. In town, he restored antique clocks, furniture, and buildings, including the Old Town House and Abbott Hall, the current town hall. 

Richard Trevett House // 1730

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Richard Trevett Jr. (1690-1749) was a wealthy shipwright and sparmaker (a carpenter who finishes and installs spars, masts, and cargo booms) in Marblehead, and part of a wealthy shipowning family. He would build this house on Washington Street (originally named King Street before the Revolution) and reside here with his family. Trevett lived here for just a few years until the death of his father, and he sold the property, which was later purchased by Joseph Pedrick, a wealthy ship owner, who’s son, John Pedrick, built an even larger mansion down the street. By the turn of the 19th century, this house was owned by Captain Samuel Horton, a commander in the Revolution under General John Glover. After the war, Samuel Horton engaged in mercantile pursuits, importing goods from all over the world. He likely brought home pineapples similar to the pineapple motif over the doorway from plantations in the Caribbean and South America as well.

Pedrick Mansion // c.1756

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One of the great Colonial-era houses of Marblehead is this stately residence, the John Pedrick Mansion on Washington Street. The house dates to about 1756 and was built for John Pedrick (1733-1780), a wealthy shipping merchant. According to ‘The History and Traditions of Marblehead’, Pedrick’s “ships sailed to nearly every port in England, Spain, and the West Indies, and his transactions were with some of the largest mercantile houses of Europe. At one time, it is said, he owned twenty-five vessels engaged in the foreign trade.” The Revolutionary War, which proved so disastrous to the merchants of Marblehead, bore with especial severity upon Major Pedrick, as several of his vessels were destroyed by British cruisers in Massachusetts Bay, and many others rotted in port from blocades and engagements. The property was likely modernized after John Pedrick’s death in 1780 with a more Federal form, possibly adding the third floor and shallow hipped roof. The building’s facade is scored to resemble ashlar masonry, giving it a more stately appearance, but the bright blue really diminishes the feature, which should typically be colored a natural stone.

Elbridge Gerry House // c.1734

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The Elbridge Gerry House is a historic house on Washington Street in Marblehead, Massachusetts that was built by local merchant, Thomas Gerry around the time of his marriage to Elizabeth Greenleaf. Architectural evidence suggests that the house was a two-story L-shaped Georgian frame structure, that in about 1820, was raised to its present three-story form in the Federal style. It was in this house that Founding Father, Elbridge Gerry (1744-1814) was born, and spent many formative years in. Gerry was a wealthy merchant, politician, and diplomat who served as the fifth vice president of the United States  under President James Madison from 1813 until his death in 1814, and is arguably best-known for Gerrymandering. The term, originally written as “Gerry-mander,” first was used on March 26, 1812, in the Boston Gazette — a reaction to the redrawing of Massachusetts state senate election districts under then-Gov. Elbridge Gerry. One of the remapped, contorted districts in Essex County (where Marblehead is located) was said to resemble the shape of a mythological salamander, hence the name “Gerry-mander”. The newly drawn state senate district in Essex County was lampooned in cartoons as a strange winged dragon, clutching at the region. Elbridge Gerry would live mostly in Cambridge and the family home was sold by around 1820 and modernized about that time.