Tag Archives: Colonial era architecture

Newbury, Essex County, Massachusetts

To view more photos from Essex County in Massachusetts or purchase prints, click here

From Wikipedia: The Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm (circa 1690) is a Colonial American farm located at 5 Little’s Lane, Newbury, Massachusetts, USA, in the midst of 231 acres (0.9 km2) of open land bordering the Merrimack River and Plum Island Sound. It is now a nonprofit museum operated by Historic New England and open to the public several days a week during the warmer months; an admission fee is charged.

In 1635, John Spencer was original grantee of the land. Daniel Pierce, Sr., a blacksmith from Ipswich in Essex County, England, purchased the property in 1651 for 500 pounds. By his death in 1677, the property had risen in value to 1200 pounds and was described in the inventory of the estate as, “A Farme about two hundred and thirty acres of upland and meadow with housing, barns and orchard.” This jump in value may indicate that the stone house was built during his lifetime. In 1861, Edward H. Little, local farmer, purchased the farm. His descendants made few changes to the house, and gave the property to the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities (now Historic New England) in 1986.

The farmhouse is built of local stone in random rubble, with a porch and gable ends of brick, and exterior walls in lime mortar. It is the only stone house of the 17th century in New England to survive with exterior walls intact. Floors and roof are timber framed, with major framing beams and joists set in pockets of the exterior walls. Molded bricks in a variety of shapes and fabrications embellish the entrance niche and arched openings. The original arched windows were replaced with smaller, Georgian windows at some point.