The Hodges-Webb-Meek House
THE HODGES-WEBB-MEEK HOUSE
The Hodges-Webb-Meek house stands in the heart of the business district at 81 Essex Street, built in the latter part of the eighteenth century. Located just back from the street, it has been for many years the only one left of the row of houses where the exclusive set of Old Salem formerly lived. It is a gambrel-roofed building of architectural importance and is closely connected with the early history of the city. Would that these old porches could relate the many romances and tragedies they have witnessed since coming into being—to tell us of the days when Salem was a social center, composed of the ship-owners and their families, of which there were a sufficient number to make a story which links itself with her wealth and ventures. It is interesting to trace as far as possible the incentive which they had in designing their homes, with their wide hallways and large, square, white paneled rooms opening on either side, often ending with the old-fashioned garden, laid out at the rear of the houses.