USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Cambridge > Historic houses and spots in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and near-by towns; > Part 5
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Its extreme smallness is a surprise to the visitor, as is also a gallery that could have been reached only by means of a ladder.
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Salem.
IN THE REVOLUTION THE FIRST ARMED RESISTANCE TO THE ROYAL AUTHORITY WAS MADE AT THIS BRIDGE, 26 FEB., 1775, BY THE PEOPLE OF SALEM. THE ADVANCE OF 300 BRITISH TROOPS, LED BY
LIEUT .- COL. LESLIE AND SENT BY GEN. GAGE TO SEIZE
MUNITIONS OF WAR, WAS
HERE ARRESTED.
The above tablet stands at the Old North Bridge, which crosses North River at the foot of North Street.
I26
Salem.
THE ROGER WILLIAMS HOUSE.
This quaint old house is said to have been built in 1634, thus disputing with the Cradock House, Medford, the honor of being the oldest now standing in North America.
It was from this house that the persecution of the General Court at Boston drove Roger Williams in 1636 to become the founder of the State of Rhode Island.
It is sometimes known as the "Witch House," because trials for witchcraft were begun here. It now stands, as always, on the corner of Essex and North Streets.
127
Beverly.
THE GEORGE CABOT HOUSE.
This house, 104 Cabot Street, though more than a hun- dred years old, has an air that indicates a period more modern.
Beverly was at one time the home of three brothers Cabot, - Andrew, John, and George, -the last, an ances- tor of Henry Cabot Lodge, being the most famous. He was at one time a representative and also a senator in Congress. and was offered the Secretaryship of the Navy by John Adams.
At this house in October, 1789, George Cabot entertained Washington at breakfast.
I28
Beverly.
" SUNDAY SCHOOL " HOUSE.
On Front Street, corner of Davis, stands a modest and unpretending old house, in which the people of Beverly take no inconsiderable pride, since it lays claim to hav- ing furnished accommodations to the first Sunday school assembled in America.
It is a matter of regret that implicit reliance cannot be placed on all the various claims of "first" and " oldest " that are put forth, since about six different towns in the Commonwealth lay claim to the possession of the "oldest house " now standing in America.
Robert Raikes, of Gloucester, England, was the founder of Sunday schools in 1781, and it is quite probable that Beverly has good ground for the claim that she makes in this instance.
129
Danvers.
THE REBECCA NOURSE HOUSE.
Danvers was set off from Salem in 1752 ; a part of this division became South Danvers in 1855, and this, in turn. became Peabody in 1868. Still, Danvers is a good-sized and beautiful town, made up of Tapleyville, Danvers Plains, and Danversport. Probably there is no town of its size in the Commonwealth that has more houses of Colo- nial time now standing than has the town of Danvers. A good type of these is the Nourse House, built in 1636 by Townsend Bishop, and now standing in a field west of Pine Street, near Tapleyville. It takes its name from the good woman who lived in it at the time of her martyrdom to the witchcraft delusion, then prevalent in both the Old World and the New. A monument to her memory has recently been erected among the " Pines," not far from the house.
130
Danvers.
On Sylvan Street, corner of Collins, stands the " Lindens," built by Robert Hooper in 1750, which was the head- quarters of General Gage in 1774. It is one of the most beautiful " mansions" of Colonial times, and is now the home of Mr. Francis Peabody.
On Maple Street, near Newbury, stands the house in which General Israel Putnam was born.
On the corner of Elm and High Streets stands the Page House, in which General Gage had a private office. The Houlton House, built in 1650, in which Judge Samuel Houlton, a noted statesman, was born in 1738, stands at the corner of Houlton and Centre Streets. Well out in a field off Water Street is the George Jacobs House, in which have lived ten generations of that name. George Jacobs himself was hanged as a wizard in 1692.
No visitor to Danvers would willingly omit seeing the house built about 1675 by a son of Governor Endicott, and now owned by a descendant of the same name. It is near Danversport Station, and, though very old, seems well preserved. The famous old pear tree, planted in 1630 by Governor Endicott, is still to be seen in a field not far from the house. It now bears fruit and shows as to its upper branches a good degree of vigor, notwithstand- ing its trunk has been sadly riven and blasted by the storms and winds of more than two and a half centuries.
131
Danvers.
On Centre Street, near Newbury, may be seen an interest- ing old house, the birthplace of Colonel Israel Hutchinson, built in 1726. The Colonel was a brave and famous fighter, and much esteemed by Washington. He went to Maine with an expedition against the Indians; was in the action at Ticonderoga; scaled the Heights of Abraham with General Wolfe; led a company of "Minute-men" April 19, 1775, and was prominent in the siege of Boston.
A monument to the memory of Colonel Hutchinson has recently been unveiled at the site of his home, Danversport. On Forest Street stands the Ambrose Hutchinson House, built in 1708 ; on Maple Street, the Jesse Putnam House. built about 1750, where Mrs. Jesse Putnam died at the age of one hundred and two years. The Haines House, which stands on Centre Street, was built about 1650. The Ann Putnam House is still standing on the old Middletown road. Ann Putnam, at the age of twelve years, was probably the chief cause of the witchcraft trouble of the time.
Sixty years after the battle of Lexington the citizens of Danvers erected a granite monument to the memory of her seven sons, who fell in the battle, April 19, 1775. It stands on Main Street at the head of Washington, Peabody.
I32
Topsfield.
THE PARSON CAPEN HOUSE.
Topsfield was settled in 1639 by people from Ipswich and Salem, it being a part of the latter, or Naumkeag, till 1650, when it was incorporated under its present name. Previous to its becoming a separate town it was known as the "New Meadows."
Mary Estes and Sarah Wildes of this town were executed as witches in 1692, during the strange witchcraft delusion.
Here are to be seen a considerable number of pre-Revolu- tionary houses, the oldest and most interesting one being the Parson Capen House, built in 1686 by the Rev. Joseph
133
THE PARSON CAPEN HOUSE.
Capen, who removed to Topsfield from Dorchester in 1683. It is noticeable for its second story overhang in front and third story overhang at the end. It is still occupied and is in good preservation, though it was never painted. This suggests the query, why should we paint our houses ? Think of improving the rich, mellow tints of time by paint- ing this fine old antique !
Every one in town knows the old house, which is reached by a five minutes' walk from the railroad station.
I34
Ipswich.
THE SALTONSTALL-WHIPPLE HOUSE.
One is inclined at once to grant any claim to old age that might be made for this house, for never have we seen one bearing more striking evidences of early origin. It claims to have been built in 1633, the year of the settlement, thus antedating by one year the " Old Fort" of Medford. It has walls of brick and stone, hidden from view (like those of the Adams houses) by an outer covering of boards. The smallness of the panes of glass and the extreme length of the "lean-to " are very noticeable.
Other Ipswich houses of Colonial times are the Bond House (1640), the Dodge House (1640), the Norton House (1650), the Caldwell House (1660), the Whittlesey House (1640), and probably one or more others.
135
Saugus.
THE HILL-BOARDMAN HOUSE.
This house fairly caps the climax! It is sufficiently pic- turesque and antique to please the most fastidious connois- seur of things old. It is not only a " lean-to " of an extreme type, but is also an "overhang," whose principal roof is formed by a sort of double reversal of the " gambrel " style.
For more than two hundred and fifty years it has over- looked the same beautiful landscape in North Saugus.
This house has been made the subject of a fine etching with an imaginary river in front.
I36
Lynn.
A WOLF PIT.
Partly owing to the fact that Lynn was practically an inland town, in consequence of the shallowness of the waters of her harbor, few important events in Colonial his- tory took place here.
The city, or, more properly, the beautiful Walden Park, contains at least two relics of "ye olden tyme " of much interest to students of our early history. These are the wolf pits, of which history states there were many in the Colonies. If there are any others in existence at the pres- ent time, the writer has never heard of them.
By means of rude measurements made by the author, these were ascertained to be about eight feet in length, six or seven feet in depth, by two feet in width. They are walled up in a very substantial manner, as may be judged from the fact that they have retained their original form admirably during all the years since 1630.
137
A WOLF PIT.
It is commendable that the city has them protected by means of substantial iron fences.
It is not difficult to find the Wolf Pits when one has reached the foot of Walden Pond. The excellent road on the north side of the pond very soon brings one to a "woods" road diverging toward the north and marked "To the Wolf Pits."
138
Swampscott.
THE BLANEY HOUSE.
Swampscott, formerly a part of Lynn, has its full share of the picturesque and the beautiful. It can also point to some things ancient. For example, at 290 Humphrey Street, we find the Blaney House. This house was built in 1640 by a Captain King. He sold it soon after to John Blaney, whose heirs still own it. Its inner walls are of stone.
139
Charlestown.
In passing in review the more important historic spots of Boston and vicinity there can be no more fitting climax than that furnished by the history of the battle of
BUNKER HILL.
Since then this spot has witnessed two magnificent and inspiring pageants, the one being the occasion of the laying of the corner-stone of
BUNKER HILL MONUMENT.
General Lafayette was present, and Daniel Webster de- livered a dedicatory oration.
Among his memorable sayings at this time is :
"Let it rise till it meet the sun in its coming ; let the earliest light of the morning gild it, and parting day linger and play on its summit."
" The celebration," says Frothingham, "was unequaled in magnificence by anything of the kind that had been seen in New England."
Conspicuous honor was paid to forty survivors of the battle who were present.
The second great pageant was the celebration in honor of the completion of the monument, Daniel Webster again being the orator, and the president of the United States, John Tyler, honoring the occasion by his presence.
" Before the orator and around him," says the historian quoted above, "was an immense concourse of people. A hundred thousand, at least, had gathered on the hallowed spot."
The monument stands on the ground inclosed by the redoubt defended by Colonel Prescott on June 17, 1775. It is an obelisk of Quincy granite 30 feet square at the base and 15 feet square near the top, is 220 feet high, and cost about $120,000.
140
BUNKER HILL MONUMENT.
During the battle of Bunker Hill the British set fire to the town, destroying nearly all the houses, most of those that escaped being on Mill Street.
The oldest now standing in the city is a three-story wooden building numbered 201 Main Street, and bears on its front a tablet with the following inscription :
HERE WAS BORN
SAMUEL FINLEY BREESE MORSE,
27 APRIL, 1791, INVENTOR OF THE
ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.
Professor Morse was graduated at Yale in 1810, studied art in England under Benjamin West, and designed an elec- tric telegraph in 1832. Congress granted him an appropria- tion for a line between Baltimore and Washington, which was completed in 1844.
Within a year there has been dug up on the grounds of this old house a solid six-pound cannon shot, - a grim re- minder of the battle.
The first settlement in Charlestown was in 1628.
The town became a city in 1847, and was annexed to Boston in 1873.
141
Miscellaneous Old Houses.
MISCELLANEOUS OLD HOUSES.
The search for old houses and historic spots has greatly grown upon us year by year, and proved a much more fruitful subject than we had previously supposed possible. One notes with pleasure the existence still of interesting old houses in nearly every town on the coast from Plym- outh to Portland.
The only house now standing in Plymouth at any time occupied by a member of the Mayflower Pilgrims is the Howland House, built in 1666.
Burlington has the famous Samuel Sewall House, built before 1751. It is on Lexington road, about a fourth of a mile from the meeting-house, and noted as the place of concealment of Hancock and Adams after their flight from Lexington, April 19, 1775.
The Doten House, however, is six years older, and stands on Sandwich Street. In Sandwich is still standing and well preserved, the Tupper House. It is pleasant to look upon, but we have not been able to learn its history.
In Duxbury we find two especially interesting old houses, - the Alden House, built in 1653, and occupied by nine gen- erations of Aldens, and the Standish House, built by a son of Myles Standish in 1666, partly from timbers saved from the burning of the house of his father.
Winthrop has an interesting old house, built in 1649 by Deane Winthrop, son of the good Governor John Winthrop. It is on Shirley Street, near Ocean Spray station.
142
MISCELLANEOUS OLD HOUSES.
Marblehead contains half a dozen or more old houses, the most famous being that of Colonel Jeremiah Lee, on Washington Street, near Abbot Hall. It is a massive, three-story brick building, and otherwise remarkable for having a hallway about eighteen feet square.
Great changes are often made by the " march of improve- ment "; sometimes equally great changes are made by the very reverse of "improvement."
One dislikes to see the homes of famous men elbowed and shouldered and crowded by their more pretentious neighbors. Such is the fate of a house, now numbered 342 1/2 Hanover Street, near the corner of Bennett, built by Increase Mather in 1677, and in it his son Cotton was born. The Mather tomb is in Copp's Hill-burying ground.
The Clough-Vernon House,
is a good specimen of overhang, situated on Vernon Place, off Chester Street, and was built before 1698.
The Blake House
stands in the rear of Cottage Street, Dorchester, and was built in 1650 by Elder James Blake, a man prominent in the affairs of the town, as is shown in a continuous service in some official capacity for more than twenty-five years.
The Aspinwall House
is perhaps the most famous old house of which the town of Brookline can boast. It was built in 1660 by Peter Aspin- wall, has always been owned by some member of the family, and stands on Aspinwall Avenue. William Aspinwall, born 1
143
MISCELLANEOUS OLD HOUSES.
in Brookline in 1743 (presumably in the old house above mentioned), was a physician of note, fought as a volunteer in the battle of Lexington, and became a surgeon in the Revolutionary Army.
The Peak House
of Medfield has been admired, talked about, written up, and illustrated in magazines and histories repeatedly, and the impression given that it is the sole survivor of the torch of the Indians of King Philip in 1676. The mistake arises probably from the extreme quaintness of its shape. It was probably built about 1762.
Medway was a part of Medfield till 1713, when it was incorporated as a separate town, the Charles River forming the boundary between the two.
Here is to be seen in good condition the
Clark House
built in 1710, and now occupied by Putnam R. Clark.
It will be of interest, at least to young folks, to remember that "Oliver Optic" (William T. Adams) was born here.
Marshfield has the Governor Winslow House, built in 1650, which was for a time the home of Daniel Webster.
Lincoln has the Whitman House, built in 1700. It is two miles from the center of the town, on the road from Waltham to Stowe. Also a half mile from the Center, on the Lexington road, the "L" part of the Flint House is still standing, and is supposed to be two hundred and fifty years old.
144
MISCELLANEOUS OLD HOUSES.
Andover has, among several old houses, that of the famous Anne Bradstreet, a relationship with whom has been claimed by Richard H. Dana, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and William Ellery Channing. This house is supposed to have been built in 1667.
Let the American youth never forget that they possess a noble inheritance, bought by the toils and the sufferings and blood of their ancestors. - JOSEPH STORY.
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