HISTORIC HOMES

OF NEW ENGLAND

Plate I.—The Old Pickering House, Salem, Mass. Built in 1651. Frontispiece.

HISTORIC HOMES OF

NEW ENGLAND

BY

MARY H. NORTHEND

AUTHOR OF "COLONIAL HOMES AND THEIR FURNISHINGS"

WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS

BOSTON

LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY

1914

Copyright, 1914,

By Little, Brown, and Company.

THIS BOOK

IS DEDICATED TO

THE BEST OF MOTHERS

PREFACE

The study of old houses grows in interest with each additional discovery of good material, such as can be found in the old New England towns and cities, more especially those along the seacoast. The preservation of these old houses has done much to give us correct ideas of the interiors, though many of these, with the change of owners, have been stripped of their colonial furnishings.

Most of the houses that are shown in this book are private homes which have been opened by the owners to allow pictured representations of correct ancestral furnishing. Houses such as these possess the greatest charm—ancestral homes that have descended from generation to generation in the same family since their founding.

It has been a great pleasure to be allowed to visit these old mansions, which show wonderful staircases, richly carved mantels, and colonial windows, each one of which is an architectural gem. Through pictured homes like these one is given a deeper interest in the early life of our country and realizes more than ever before what the colonial period stood for in home building.

I wish to acknowledge the kindness of my many friends in helping me to make this book possible, particularly Mrs. Charles M. Stark of Dunbarton, New Hampshire, for use of the old Stark mansion; the Colonial Dames of Massachusetts, for allowing correct representations in pictures of the Quincy Mansion; the New Hampshire Society of the Sons of Cincinnati, for the use of the Ladd-Gilman House; Miss Caroline O. Emmerton of Salem, for permission to show the historic House of Seven Gables; the Historical Society of Marblehead, for the use of the Lee Mansion; the Medford Daughters of the Revolution, for the old Royall House; the Dalton Club of Newburyport, who have thrown open their club-house to be pictured; Mrs. Jacob C. Rogers of Boston and Peabody; Mr. Jacob C. Peabody of Danvers; as well as many others, including Mr. John Pickering of Salem, who have allowed me access to their houses.

We of New England are deeply interested in our historic homes, and it is to the lover of the colonial that I wish to show by picture and text the wonderful old mansions that are still in our midst, which have done much to bring New England into prominence in the architectural world of to-day.

MARY H. NORTHEND.
August 15, 1914.

CONTENTS

LIST OF PLATES

CHAPTER I

HOMES OF LONG AGO

Scattered here and there throughout the South, the Middle West, and the New England States, we find the homes of long ago standing as mute witnesses and representatives of periods in our country's settlements that have become historical. We come across them by the wayside, when driving along country roads, or we catch glimpses of them at the end of grassy lanes, surrounded by pleasant meadows, while others, jutting in between twentieth century houses in our large cities, serve to link the old days with the new. These old mansions are often tenantless; some, with sagging roofs and gaping sides, are fast falling into decay. Still others, well preserved and freshly painted, surrounded by the well kept lawns and posy beds of our grandmothers' time, are survivals of a glorious past.

Old houses are like old romances; both are filled with mystery. Could they but speak, what fascinating tales they would reveal. They carry us back in imagination to one of the most eventful periods of our country's life—that of its struggle for freedom—and they inspire us with a desire to weave them into stories that will give authentic glimpses of the days when our country was young. Surrounding these ancient landmarks we find an irresistible and intangible charm that never fails to appeal, not only to the house-lover but the antiquarian as well. For, no matter how shabby the exterior may be, inside its four walls has been enacted a series of comedies and tragedies, which, if known, might overshadow the romances of the great masters of literature.

In spite of the mystery surrounding these old homesteads, there is, nevertheless, something definite about them which has for the student of the past a deep meaning and a distinct appeal.

Harking back, we find that each particular type of house represents a stage in the development of architecture. They cover a period when architects were practically unknown. Many were evolved from the master builder's brain, while others have been developed little by little from early designs. Monuments of departed days, they stand models to which our present-day architects turn for inspiration.

Few, if any, of the first houses are still standing. They were constructed of logs and had thatched roofs. The timber was, at first, hand sawed in saw pits dug for that purpose, a tedious process. Later on, sawmills were erected, but not in sufficient number to meet the demand for frame houses.

The second period of house building brought out a new idea in construction. Some of these houses were built with two stories in front and one in the rear, this lower story being covered by an extension of the sloping roof. The most imposing of this type were those which were designed with gables at the front and chambers underneath.

In those days, the best kinds of lumber were plentiful, so the frame could be built of picked wood, preferably white oak. In houses of this style, the outer walls were daubed with clay, covered with boards. At first, they were called clay boards, the name being afterwards corrupted to clapboards. Lime was rarely used in daubing, since lime was obtainable only by burning shells. Sometimes clay was intermixed with straw. Many windows had small, diamond panes, set in lead cases. These may be found to-day in some of the old houses that have escaped vandalism. The windows were often divided into two parts and opened outward.

The entrance hall in these old homes led into a large and imposing apartment. On the walls were hung frames containing hair flowers and funeral pieces wrought by hand. This was known as the "company" or "guest" room, used only on state occasions. The principal room was the kitchen with its sanded floor, often laid herring-bone pattern. This was used as a dining-room and kitchen combined. Through the center of the house ran a chimney six feet square, around which clustered the closets, many of them secret. Here were concealed the family treasures, plate, and perchance a refugee. The family gathering place was the kitchen. It requires little imagination to repeople it with guests. Seemingly, we watch the elders seated on large, wooden settles inside the fireplace, roasting their faces, while they freeze their backs. The old iron crane swings outward, holding the jack, spit, and pot hooks. The Dutch oven covered with ashes contains the evening meal.

The only light save the firelight was the pitch-pine torch, by whose flickering flame one read or sewed. Close at hand on a nail hung the old horn lantern ready for use, either to tend the stock or light a visiting neighbor home. It is an appealing picture of colonial life.

Among the old houses there are none so full of interest as those which have been carefully preserved in the same family, handed down from generation to generation. Over the threshold of these homes have passed men and women whose names are linked irretrievably with important events in our nation's history.

In the early history of our country, few seaport towns stand out in bolder relief than Salem, Massachusetts, a city noted at the commencement of the nineteenth century for her commercial prosperity, and whose ships sailed to every port on the globe. These ships were small, clumsy affairs, but staunch in build. The cargoes were valuable ventures, sent by Salem merchants who were fearless plungers. The flavor of the sea still lingers about this seaport town, particularly along Derby Street, where, in the prosperous shipping days, social life was centered.

Plate> II.—Doorway, Oliver House, Salem, Mass. Built in 1802.

Years crept on apace, and the country grew more prosperous with the increase of population; and in the seaport town, more especially, came a demand for larger and better houses. Money circulated freely, and ventures proved successful. Trade steadily increased, bringing prosperity in its wake. Commerce was at its height, and the harbor was filled with incoming and outgoing ships, whose holds were stored with rich cargoes of household goods, furniture, and glass, intermixed with merchandise. Much of the valuable furniture is still to be found in the houses of to-day.

The story of those stirring times reads like a bit of romance. The tide still ebbs and flows at Derby Street, lapping the piers much as it did a century ago, when ships four tiers deep lay tied up at the now deserted wharves. The crews were boys, many of them, sons of the merchants, who, from sailing before the mast, rose rapidly to positions of importance, becoming captains of their ships at an age when the lads of to-day are just leaving school.

Like a dream seems the life of long ago. No more, save in imagination, do we see the jolly sailor lads with sea legs on, bowling along Derby Street, bound for Kit's Dancing Hall, there to indulge themselves in merry dance or quench their thirst at the flowing bowl. The Old Inn or Ordinary has long since passed away, as has the lumbering stage and jolly drivers, who snapped their whips and cracked their jokes around a cheerful, open fire while waiting for the incoming ships. The large, square homes of yesterday are now degenerated into tenement houses.

Three of the most prominent merchants of that day were William Grey, Joseph Peabody, and Elias Hasket Derby. They owned the greater number of the ships that sailed to foreign ports, and their names are household words. On the wharves still stand their old counting-houses, now put to other uses.

With the decline of commerce and the decrease of shipping, the tide of building turned inland. Large, imposing houses were erected in other parts of the town. Elias Hasket Derby chose as a site for his new house what is now known as Derby Square. The estate was a large one, terraced to the water's edge. The house was of wood, three stories in height, and costing eighty thousand dollars. Much of Samuel McIntire's best wood work was used here. Not many months after its completion, the owner died, and his entire estate was sold. The house was torn down, much of the timber being used in other houses that were in the process of building. Captain Cook was at that time erecting for his daughter, who married Henry K. Oliver, a stately home on Federal Street. Into this were introduced some of the best specimens of the wood carving. This mansion was a type that came into prominence at the close of the Revolutionary War, a large, square house, three stories in height, showing in exterior finish many of McIntire's best designs. The gate-posts on either side of the little picket gate were especially carved for the old Derby Mansion, as were the classic columns that support the porch. Not only outside the house but inside as well, one comes across McIntire's wonderful carving. Step over the threshold, enter the spacious hallway, that like most constructed in that day extends entirely through the house and opens on to an old-fashioned garden beyond. Here the door frames and stairway show the master's handiwork. The broad landing is lighted by a window especially designed. Large, square rooms open on either side of the hall, the one at the right showing scenic wall-paper made in Paris and hung in 1808. A feature of this room is a hob-grate, one of the first ever placed in any Salem home.

Plate III.—Hallway, Oliver House; Living Room, Oliver House.

The old merchants knew well how to build for comfort and beauty. One of their old houses, still standing on Essex Street, Salem, was built in 1750 by one Joseph Sprague, a merchant. It is a rambling, spacious affair, three stories in height at the rear and two at the front. The grounds were extensive, leading to the water's edge.

Major Sprague was a man of standing, interested in military affairs. It was he that commanded the first uniformed company of light infantry. Organized on April 22, 1776, they applied to the General Court to make them independent of the militia but not of the regiment. In those days their uniform was much more striking than at present. Green coats with gold trimming were worn, also ruffled shirts, the ruffles falling over the hands, under dresses of white, black gaiters, and black hats of beaver ornamented with ostrich plumes. This company soon disbanded.

Plate IV.—Hallway, Cabot Low House, 1748; Fireplace, Oliver House.

The ancestral home of Major Sprague has never been out of the family. It was built by him for his bride. Lifting the ponderous knocker, one enters the open door, passing into a broad hallway with a colonial staircase showing fine, hand-carved balusters. Opening out of this are large, square rooms, filled with rich, old Chippendale. Much of this was brought over in the major's ships. Huge open fireplaces are found in every room. One of them is surrounded by tiles, picturing Æsop's fables.

Closets innumerable, such as would delight the heart of a twentieth-century housekeeper, are everywhere. There are large ones and small ones. Sometimes, concealed behind panels, were secret closets, but the most important of all, as well as the most historical, has disappeared. This was used in Revolutionary times to shelter one of the servants, a deserter from the Continental Army, who was discovered and shot.

Major Sprague had a comely daughter Sarah, who was a reigning belle of that day. Her beauty attracted the attention of one William Stearns, a Harvard collegian, who lived in the Craigie House at Cambridge, afterwards the home of Longfellow. Every Saturday night he swam the unbridged Mystic River and walked to Salem to see her. They were married in 1776 and lived in the town. He was one of the largest stockholders in the turnpike road built between Salem and Boston, and the story runs that he declared after it was finished he would be able to stand on the steps of his Salem home and look directly into the Boston market. A son of the fair Sarah married Thresea St. Agnan from Trinidad. She was an intimate of Josephine Tascher de La Pageree, afterwards the consort of Napoleon. A beautiful gold-banded tortoise-shell comb is still kept in the family, a present from Josephine to Agnes.

Many are the interesting historical houses to be found in this city, each of which has a story hidden away under its roof. One of these standing next to the Old Witch House was owned originally by a Captain Davenport. It is mentioned as early as 1662. Later, the captain removed to Boston to take charge of the fortification at Castle Island and on July 15, 1665, was killed "By a solemn stroke of thunder." The estate was then conveyed to one Jonathan Corwan, afterwards called Curwin, a man of prominence in the witchcraft trial through being appointed one of the judges.

Later on his grandson Samuel, an exceedingly interesting man with a most irascible disposition, lived in the same mansion. Graduated from Harvard in 1735, he became a merchant, afterwards taking part in the Pepperrell Expedition against Louisburg as captain and rose to the rank of "Judge of Admiralty." Espousing the cause of the Loyalists, he was forced to leave for England. Returning in 1784, he found his estate in a very bad condition, most of his valuable library having been sold. For many years afterwards he was a prominent gentleman in the life of the city and was often seen walking the streets, wearing his English wig, clothed in a long cloak of red cloth, his fingers covered with rings, and using a gold-headed cane as he walked.

There is no purer type of colonial house in the city by the sea, than the Cabot House, built by one Joseph Cabot in 1748 and which was for thirty years the residence of William Crowninshield Endicott, who served under President Cleveland as Secretary of War.

Near Derby Street stands the house made famous by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Here, in May, 1840, he called to see his cousin "The Duchess," Miss Susan Ingersoll, on which occasion she told him the story of the house, and the name struck him so forcibly that he is said to have repeated it again and again as if to impress it on his memory. From this incident we have the romance of The House of the Seven Gables.

CHAPTER II

THE HOUSE OF THE SEVEN GABLES

The visitor to Salem has no difficulty in finding the House of the Seven Gables, for any one can direct him there, and he is waylaid by boys who wish to guide him to it.

His way lies through what was once the court end of the town. This quarter, long since deserted by fashion—its fine old houses are now turned into tenements—still retains enough of its ancient state to arouse the visitor's interest. So his mind is in a most receptive mood when a final corner takes him into Turner Street, and he descries at its very end the rear of the ancient mansion, embowered by trees, the long sweep of its lean-to crowned by a cluster of chimneys.

Plate V.—The House of the Seven Gables, Salem, Mass.

The House of the Seven Gables is most pleasantly situated, overlooking Salem harbor, with a view across the water and of Marblehead in the distance. The house faces the south. Its east end borders on Turner Street, crowding down so close to the narrow sidewalk that the picturesque sign over the shop door swings just over the heads of the passers-by. At the back of the house the lean-to already mentioned slopes down to the yard, while to the west the land extends beyond the garden to the next street.

The steeply sloping roof of the ancient mansion, its sharp, pointed gables, its gray, weather-beaten clapboards, the faded red of its brick chimneys, all attract the visitor. Romance speaks to him from the tiny casements and, dreaming that he shall find Miss Hepzibah herself behind the counter, he opens the shop door and hurriedly enters. The bell over the door jangles his welcome.

Copyright. 1910, by C. O. Emmerton.

Copyright, 1910, by C. O. Emmerton.
Plate VI.—Hallway, House of the Seven Gables; Hepzibah's Shop, House of the Seven Gables.

It would be hard to find a tinier place than that little shop. And how full it is of everything: of toys, of candies, of baskets and rag mats and antiques and bits of embroidery and, best of all, quaint Jimcrows, the gingerbread men so thoroughly appreciated by Miss Hepzibah's young customer.

The present presiding genius of the little shop stands behind a high, narrow counter surmounted by a very old, quaint, glass show-case. She is a lady of far more charm and tact than was poor Miss Hepzibah, with much of interest to tell about her wares, and answers with great patience questions about the house and the families who lived in it.

The house was built in 1669 by John Turner, a Salem merchant, and was successively owned by his son and grandson, both John Turners. The third John Turner sold the house in 1782 to Captain Samuel Ingersoll. Hawthorne's connection with the house begins with the Ingersolls, who were his kinsfolk. Mrs. Ingersoll was a Hawthorne and a cousin of Hawthorne's father.

Her daughter Susannah was eighteen years older than Hawthorne, although of the same generation. She inherited the estate while still a young woman and was at first fond of society, but after an unfortunate love affair she became a recluse. She spent a long life in gloomy retirement in the ancient mansion with no companion except her under-witted maid. Her young cousin, Nathaniel Hawthorne, was one of the few men allowed to cross her jealously guarded threshold.

Miss Ingersoll's old age was cheered by an adopted son, a boy of mysterious birth, supposed by some to be the child of her servant. Whoever he was, Miss Ingersoll was devoted to him. She gave him a fine education and started him in life as a clergyman. He was known at first as Horace Conelly but later took the name of Ingersoll. Miss Ingersoll left him her entire fortune, even her family homestead, the House of the Seven Gables. But unfortunately he proved to be a man of very weak character. He dissipated the fortune, and in 1879 the house was sold for his debts.

In the next few years the house changed owners many times, until in 1883 it came into the possession of the Upton family, who occupied it for twenty-five years. In 1908 it was bought for the use of the settlement to which it gives its name.

In 1909 the house was repaired and fitted up for settlement work, and while it was under repair, many of the original features, or traces of them, were discovered. During its two hundred and forty years of existence some of its gables and its lean-to had been taken off, the overhang closed in, and the secret staircase taken down. A careful restoration was made of all these missing features, a matter of great interest to architects and antiquarians and even to the casual visitor.

Leaving the little shop, the visitor enters directly the old kitchen. This is a small room sheathed with pine boards put on perpendicularly, after the fashion of the earliest times, so as to form a simple pattern. This special pattern is peculiar to the House of the Seven Gables.

An immense fireplace occupies nearly the whole of one side of the room. It is filled with old-fashioned cooking utensils and illustrates the evolution which has taken place along this line. The pots and kettles are swung from a long iron bar placed well up in the chimney. (The crane with which we are all familiar is simply a later development of this primitive bar.) There is a brick oven built into the fireplace, also a Dutch oven, which is a pot with a rim around the cover to hold the hot coals; and, the last step in evolution before the cook-stove, we find the tin kitchen standing in its place before the andirons.

The most precious of all the furnishings of the fireplace is an old-fashioned toaster from which Hawthorne has had many a slice of toast. Close to the fireplace is a panelled oak chest as old as, if not older, than the house. Flanking the chest is the top of a highboy, which once belonged to Miss Ingersoll and may have been bought of the Turners with the house. As Miss Ingersoll was a conservative person, it was probably not until after her day that the highboy was divided, and the top part set on the floor with feet of its own.

Copyright, 1910, by C. O. Emmerton.

Copyright, 1910, by C. O. Emmerton.
Plate VII.—Dining Room, House of the Seven Gables; Parlor, House of the Seven Gables.

Opposite the highboy is an old-fashioned kitchen dresser, part of which was found in the house, and the rest designed to match. Its shelves now contain samples of crockery and old salt glaze, with specimens of Bennington and tortoise-shell ware. If the visitor is up on such matters, he will have noticed that certain articles in the room are of much later date than others. He is then told that the idea in furnishing the house is to make it look as an old, conservative Salem house would have looked in 1840, the period of the story. That is to say, there is practically no furniture later than 1840, and most of the pieces are much earlier—survivors, so to speak, of the many periods through which the house has passed. The later and more elegant pieces of furniture (generally speaking, mahogany of about 1800) are to be found in the parlor and dining-room, while the earlier pieces of walnut, cherry, pine, and oak have been relegated to the kitchen and attic; the same is to be said of the china—Lowestoft and lustre supplanting the earlier wares in the parlor and dining-room.

With the determination to note this evolution in household furnishing, the visitor continues on his tour of the house. He leaves the kitchen by a dark, narrow passage. A door at its end admits him to a large, sunny, low-ceiled room, which has always been used as a combination dining and sitting-room. The Turners called this room "the hall," a term the early settlers brought with them from England. The Ingersolls called it "the keeping room." To the settlement residents to-day, it is simply the dining-room. It is certainly most attractive with its rare, old, white painted panelling and old-fashioned furniture. The sideboard, dining-table, and secretary are fine old pieces of mahogany. The chairs are of the Windsor pattern. On the wall are pictures of clipper ships and foreign ports and one portrait of a rather grim old gentleman. Under the portrait is the dinner-wagon and a red lacquer tray, once the property of Miss Ingersoll.

In the novel this room is called "the parlor of more moderate size" in contrast to the grand reception room. And here, more than anywhere else, the scene of the story is laid. For this was the room where Colonel Pyncheon was discovered dead by his little grandson, and here after many years that grandson received Matthew Maule the carpenter and sent for his daughter Alice to join them. And this was the room that Miss Hepzibah Pyncheon used as the living-room, and where she and her brother Clifford and her little cousin Phœbe ate their meals under their ancestor's frowning portrait. Here it was that Judge Pyncheon came and bullied Hepzibah and sent her to find her brother. The story tells how poor Hepzibah, sadly against her will, goes over the house looking for Clifford. But she does not find him in his room, and when she hurries back to the living-room, Clifford himself comes out of it and points to the judge, who is sitting dead in his chair. Hawthorne does not explain in the novel how Clifford left his room and got down to the living-room, but the house itself offers an explanation.

Beside the fireplace in the living-room is a round-topped door opening into a brick-lined closet. Entering the closet the guide opens a secret door, revealing a mysterious staircase by which the visitor mounts apparently right into the heart of the huge central chimney. The staircase is very steep and narrow and makes many a turn. Finally, the door at the top opens, and the visitor steps out into Clifford's room. The door closes with a snap behind him. The visitor looks round but sees only the pine sheathing with the pattern peculiar to the House of the Seven Gables.

In response to the question: "Why was the secret staircase built?" the guide confesses that no one knows. There have been many surmises. Some have thought it was a refuge from the Indians. Others have fancied it was for purposes of smuggling. The most probable explanation seems to be that it was a temporary hiding-place in case of a recurrence of the witchcraft delusion. About 1889 Mr. Upton began to take down the great central chimney and then discovered the secret staircase, which was rebuilt in 1909 from his description. It looks so old that the visitor can hardly believe that it is only a very exact reproduction of the original.

Clifford's room is only a small attic chamber with a mahogany bed and bureau and an attractive set of painted chairs, which belonged in the House of the Seven Gables but were given away at the time the house was sold for Horace Ingersoll's debts. All the furniture was scattered at that time, but since then many pieces have found their way back, either by gift or purchase.

Copyright, 1910, by C. O. Emmerton.
Plate VIII.—Attic, House of the Seven Gables

The visitor leaves Clifford's room and makes his way into the open attic, for he came up two stories by the secret staircase and is now under the sharply pointed roof and surrounded by trunks, chests, and bandboxes. This is a good place to understand the structure of the house. The main building had at first just two gables in front and one at each end; then a wing was built on in front, covering one of the gables, which was largely cut away. This wing had three gables, and the porch, which was built in the angle of the wing and the main house, was roofed by another gable. An old plan of the house shows a wing built on to the lean-to in the rear, which was probably roofed by another gable; so the house in the time of the first two John Turners probably had eight gables. It seems likely that the third John Turner took off the porch gable, which must certainly have been very troublesome, as its position made it a pocket for the ice and snow. If we omit the porch gable, assuming that it was gone long before the Ingersolls bought the house, we find that the rest correspond very closely to Hawthorne's description of them as they are mentioned in different parts of the novel.

The stump of the cut-off gable is a great object of interest in the attic, as is also a piece of the old front door, which is studded with nails after the fashion of the early colonial days.

One flight below the attic is the great chamber, Phœbe's room in the story. This splendid, great, sunny room has fine panelling, dating from about 1720, and good examples of early furniture. To give an idea of how the room looked when first built the guide moves aside the Queen Anne mirror and opens a small door behind it, cut in the wall of the room. This reveals one of the great supporting posts, which is roughly carved in mediæval manner. This post, with its companion beams and posts, once stood out in the room, but since the panelling was put in, that is nearly two hundred years ago, it has been hidden from sight. This silent witness indicates the great age of the house, which has outlived so many styles and fashions. Another flight below is the parlor or "grand reception room," as it was called.

In the story it is described as unfurnished—an empty room that Miss Hepzibah was too poor to heat, where Clifford took his exercise on rainy days. Into this room the hero Holgrave drew little Phœbe, that she might not enter the living-room and have the shock of discovering Judge Pyncheon sitting there dead. One forgets about the story in admiring the very happy color scheme of this finely proportioned room. The wall-paper is gray, a reproduction of some wall-paper found in the house. The graceful little classical groups indicate that it was designed in the early part of the last century. Against the gray wall-paper and fine white painted panelling, the red curtains at the three windows are seen in pleasant contrast. They are a wonderfully soft yet brilliant red, with a beautiful brocaded design. A set of Sheraton chairs covered with black figured hair-cloth give character to the room, and the warm Turkey rug on the floor helps to carry out the color scheme.

The fireplace in this room is of especial interest. It is large, but the guide opens a wood closet and shows that the original fireplace was very much larger. At the right of the fireplace opens a quaintly panelled door, disclosing a buffet with a carved shell overhead and shelves crowded with delicate and beautiful old china, while on the floor of the closet an array of ginger jars reminds one of the Salem ships that brought home such good things from the East. One is also reminded of the East by the lacquered work-box, chess-board, and teapoys. In front of a slant-top desk stands Hawthorne's favorite chair. It looks so comfortable that we can readily believe that he would select it when making a call on his cousin.

Her portrait looks down on the chair. Hers is an unusual face, striking though hardly beautiful. Was she the original of Miss Hepzibah? Her lonely life in this old, gabled house, the wealth of affection she bestowed on a weak and selfish man, certainly suggest that Hawthorne had his cousin in mind when he drew this character.

After a lingering inspection of the parlor, which looks so homelike because, like the dining-room, it is really lived in by the settlement residents, the visitor passes out the front door to study the exterior of the house and enjoy the old-fashioned garden.

The first object of interest is the overhanging second story. The "overhang," as it is called, was closed in, probably for a century or more, simply because overhangs had gone out of fashion. It was accidentally discovered when the house was repaired by the carpenter, who was examining the soundness of the sills. Some of the old clapboards can still be seen, and a small piece of the drops which originally ornamented the corner posts. The present drops are reproductions, except a bit of the old drops that were left to nail to.

At the end of the garden, which is bright with old-fashioned flowers, stands the counting-house. This is a small building found on the estate in use as a wood-shed. Its age and previous history are not known, but as it is of the same size and shape as the old counting-house mentioned in the inventories of the Turner family, it has been furnished to represent it. There is the master's desk, a wonderful affair with many secret drawers, the clerk's desk, and armchairs, models of ships, a barometer, a telescope, etc.

Adjoining the counting-house is a grape arbor, where the visitor can refresh himself with a cup of tea, and while he sits there enjoy a view of the harbor across the garden. On his left is the House of the Seven Gables, and on his right is another old house used for the settlement clubs and classes. It is the Hathaway house, dating from 1683, but that is another story.

CHAPTER III

THE PICKERING HOUSE

It is doubtful if any other historic home in New England can boast, as does the Pickering house situated in Salem, Massachusetts, of being in the direct line of a family for nine generations.

This family originated in Yorkshire, England. John Pickering, the founder of the Salem branch, was born in old England in 1614; he came to the colonies and lived in Ipswich from 1634 to 1636. In the early part of 1636 he came to Salem, and on December 7, 1636, John Pickering, carpenter, was granted to be an inhabitant of that city.

Plate IX.—The Pickering House, Salem, Mass.

Long years ago, when this city was in its youth and sparsely settled, large estates, many of them original grants, were founded. It was then that this now famous house was erected. It was commenced in 1650 and finished in 1651 by one John Pickering, the emigrant ancestor of the present owner of the old mansion, who became a considerable landowner, purchasing his estate in different lots until his property extended from Chestnut Street to the Mill Pond, then known as South River.

Plate X.—Pickering House, Side View.

The twenty-acre lot known as the home lot, on which he built the historic mansion, was originally a part of the governor's field, once owned by Governor John Endicott. It was conveyed by him to Emmanuel Downing, who sold it, so tradition tells, to one John Pickering to pay for the commencement dinner of Sir George Downing, who was graduated in the first class at Harvard. The original deed is still in the possession of the family.

Plate XI.—Entrance Door, Pickering House; Entrance Door in the Pickering House.

The house was built in the Elizabethan style of architecture and resembled the famous Peacock Inn in Rouseley, England. It was constructed of white oak, which grew in a swamp on the estate. The exterior is practically unchanged; and the interior shows low, beamed ceilings and small windows. The entrance door opens into a low hall, from which the stairs ascend to the second story floor. This has been lengthened within the last few years by taking out one of the chimneys. As in many old houses, large rooms open on either side. At the right is the library, which has been enlarged by opening up an alcoved recess. This was formerly a chamber, and is used to-day to accommodate several bookcases filled with rare old books, many of which are in manuscript. The colonial fireplace, with its scriptural tiles, is a feature of this room, where is shown a wonderful old English ball table that was brought over by the emigrant ancestor. The chairs, many of them, were made by Theophilus Pickering, whose old desk where he wrote many of his sermons stands at one side of the fireplace. Rare books and interesting mementoes are found on every side.

Plate XII.—Hallway, Pickering House.

Opposite is a large drawing-room filled with Chippendale and colonial furniture, and showing Colonel Timothy Pickering's picture on the wall. At the rear of this room is a dining-room which, as does the rest of the house, contains more fine furniture.

Autograph letters fill many books, some of them received by Colonel Timothy Pickering from President Washington. Rare old glass, china, and silver speak of bygone days.

Plate XIII.—Dining Room, Pickering House; Alcove, Pickering House.

Up-stairs are interesting, rare old four-posters, still showing their quaint hangings; and one notes the old chimney that occupies such a large space in the house. Inside one of the closets is the old army chest marked with Pickering's initials and showing his rank. It was used by him when quartermaster in the Revolutionary War.

The builder of the house married Elizabeth, whose surname is not known. He resided upon the estate until his death, which occurred in 1657; the property descended to his son John, who increased his landownings by the purchase of the eastern or Anthrum lot from Edmund Batter.

Plate XIV.—Living Room, Pickering House; Drawing Room, Pickering House.

The second John married Alice Flint, a most estimable lady, in 1657. He served as a lieutenant in the Indian War, in 1675, and particularly distinguished himself in the memorable fight of Bloody Brook at Deerfield, Massachusetts. He died in 1694 and was succeeded by another John, third in line, who was a farmer, frugal and industrious, and who held many positions of trust in the community. He married Sarah Burrill, of an influential Lynn family. There were two sons, Timothy and Theophilus. The latter was graduated from Harvard and was called to Chebacco parish, first as assistant to Reverend John Wise, and afterwards as minister. There is in the Pickering house a manuscript book on physics bound in leather and illustrated by him. There is also a set of ten chairs made by his hand in 1724.

Plate XV.—Fireplace with Scriptural Tiles, Pickering House; The Old Pickering Sideboard.

His brother Timothy, who inherited the estate, was deacon of the Tabernacle Church in Salem at his father's death. He was the father of nine children. During his lifetime he added three more rooms on the northern side, raising the roof, which sloped almost to the ground after the fashion of buildings of that period. At the time of these improvements, the eastern part of the house was one hundred years old and the western part eighty. When the weather boards were ripped off, the sills of white oak were so sound that it was decided they would last longer than new ones. One of the peaks was removed at this time because of leaks but was replaced in 1840 by John, the son of Colonel Pickering.

When Timothy inherited the estate, he was the first to break the line of Johns. He is described as a gentleman of great piety, firmness of character, and decided convictions. He died at the age of seventy-five and left the estate to his son John, the fifth of the line, who was a bachelor and lived in the old home with his sister, Mrs. Gool, as housekeeper. His occupation was agricultural, but he held several public positions. He represented the town in the General Court for many years, and was town treasurer in 1782. His brother Timothy, who was Clerk of Register of Deeds, entered the Continental Army, and at that time John took his place with the intention of returning the office to him on his return from the war, but he became so accustomed to the work that he kept the position until 1806, when he was compelled to resign through the infirmities of age. It is related of him that at one time he was supposedly fatally ill, and the question of his successor in office coming up, it was proposed to canvass for a candidate. This so enraged John that he recovered from his illness. He was one of the original members of the Academy of Arts and Sciences and was noted for his honesty, industry, and the careful management of his affairs. At his death, the ancestral estate passed to his nephew John (the fifth), the only break in the transmission of the property from father to son.

John's father, Colonel Timothy, the brother of John (fourth), although never owning the estate, spent his early boyhood upon it, and much of its fame comes from his connection with it. Colonel Timothy was born in the old house July 17, 1745. Upon his graduation from college, he entered the office of the Register of Deeds as clerk and was appointed head of this department a few years later. In 1768, he was admitted to the Bar, and became the leader and champion of the patriots of Essex County; he wrote the famous address from the citizens of Salem to General Gage, relative to the Boston Port Bill. He held the office of Judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Essex County, being sole Judge of the Maritime Court of the Middle District. This was an office involving great responsibility and decisions concerning large amounts of property, as that was the day of privateers. His military service began in 1766, when he was commissioned lieutenant of the Fourth Military Company of Salem.

Three years later he was promoted to the rank of captain and by his interest and careful training raised appreciably the standard of discipline. He was commissioned by the Royal Government colonel of the First Regiment, Essex County Militia. He led the troops who marched out to oppose the entry of Leslie and his Redcoats into Salem on February 26, 1775, when the famous colloquy on North Bridge took place, and the munitions of war concealed in the town were saved to the colonists.

In the fall of 1776, he joined Washington in New Jersey with a regiment of seven hundred men, and the next year he was made Adjutant-general of the Continental Army, commencing his service July 17, 1777. When Congress decided to change the personnel of the Continental Board of War from members of Congress to three men not congressmen, Colonel Pickering was chosen to serve on the Board, whose powers and duties were many and important. He was made Quartermaster-general of the Army, also, holding this position until its abolishment, July 25, 1785. He was a member of the committee which wrote the farewell address delivered to Washington, November 15, 1783. With the close of the war, Colonel Pickering withdrew from public life to devote himself to agriculture. He settled in Philadelphia, but his private life was of short duration, as his services were needed for the adjustment of claims made by Wyoming settlers. He had a thrilling experience in the West, being captured by a band of masked men who carried him off and subjected him to horrible torture.

Colonel Pickering was a most charming host and though apparently stern and forbidding, delightful in the midst of his family. He retained his inherited fondness for agriculture, at seventy-five still filling the position of President of the Agricultural Societies of Essex County and bearing off the first prize for plowing, in competition with the farmers of the vicinity. It was his habit to preserve letters and documents of every description, the most important of which were published after his death in 1829, and which, owing to his prominence in national affairs, are very interesting reading.

Colonel Pickering is an example of one of the best types of a New Englander of his time: a brave, patriotic soldier, a talented writer, an impartial, able, and energetic public official, a leader of the Federal party, occupying four Cabinet positions, serving his country whenever he was needed, but content to return to his simple life when the need for him in public life was over.

At the death of Colonel Pickering's brother, John, the ancestral estate descended to the colonel's son, John (fifth). He inherited his father's public spirit and served in the General Court, three times as representative from Essex and twice from Norfolk and Suffolk counties. He was Secretary of the Legation at Lisbon and later under Rufus King in London, and finally became United States Minister to England. He was a member of many learned societies in Europe, received several diplomas, and brought home a fine library collected on the continent. He was a profound scholar, a writer in law, and especially interested in philology, understanding twenty-two different languages.

The house is now in the possession of John Pickering, the eighth of the line, whose son John will succeed his father. The ancient house, in all the dignity of old age, is the central feature of the lot, a picturesque historic mansion, considered one of the most important landmarks of Salem, Massachusetts.

CHAPTER IV

"THE LINDENS"

Nowhere in American history is there a colonial home more closely linked with England than is "The Lindens," for here it was that Governor Gage, during his sojourn in the colonies, made his official home. This house, situated at Danvers, Massachusetts, was erected in or about 1770. The exact year is not definitely known, as at that early period the records were scanty, but about this time the mansion, which is now standing, was built by one Robert Hooper, a rich Marblehead merchant, who was thought to be a Tory at heart.

Plate XVI.—"The Lindens," Danvers, Mass.

When Governor Gage, sent over by order of the king from England to convene the General Court, came to this country as a stranger, he naturally demanded a residence suited for his station. This was in 1774, probably four years after the completion of the building.

Robert Hooper offered this house to the governor as a summer home. Being retired, as it was several miles from Salem where the court convened, and also surrounded by extensive grounds, it proved most suitable for the general's residence, a magnificent home in keeping with what he demanded.

Those were troublous times. The edict had gone forth forbidding the passage of many measures that would have given to the colonies more freedom than the mother country thought best. It was even feared that if these measures were adopted, the colonies would eventually be allowed to do practically as they chose.

In considering this subject, it must be remembered that the colonies were supposed by England to have very rich possessions, and it behooved her to keep a strict hand on her unruly subjects who were planning for separation from the mother land.

Plate XVII.—Hallway, "The Lindens."

General Gage was sent over to look into the condition of affairs and to see what could be done to bring about harmony. It was the middle of July when the troop ships sailed into the harbor of Boston, and landed General Gage, who later made his way through Salem streets to his headquarters in the Hooper house. During his residence, this mansion was the scene of many a merrymaking, and within its walls was often heard the clanking of his officers' swords as the brilliantly uniformed men, members of His Majesty's army, visited the house and were entertained by their commander.

While "The Lindens" was the headquarters of General Gage, or Governor Gage, as he was generally known, he had his office at the Page house in Danvers, where the tea drinking episode took place on the roof. He formed a brilliant spectacle, with his officers accompanying him, as he rode over the highway every day in the fulfilment of his official duties.

At that time the country was not thickly settled, and the houses were so few that from his windows he could obtain an uninterrupted view of Salem harbor. One reason for his taking the Page house was because he could watch the vessels sailing in and out and thus guard himself against capture by surprise.

Not long afterwards British troops were brought into Salem harbor, disembarking at the point where Derby Wharf now is. There were two companies of the Sixty-fourth Royal Infantry who, with their brilliant red uniforms, made a striking spectacle as they marched through the streets to the governor's house, where they encamped on the plain opposite the headquarters. Later on these troops were followed by the Fifty-ninth Regiment, who were quartered at Fort Pickering on Winter Island. Messengers were constantly passing from one body of troops to the other, carrying messages from the commander.

But little imagination was required to realize that the defender was not popular, and that the people had very little respect for him. They had never forgotten the Boston Massacre, neither did they fail to remember that they had come to this country for freedom of thought. There was a growing hostility among them, though they were under discipline and generally kept within bounds. Still, enough restlessness was manifested for the camp to be watchful against surprise. They knew only too well that the independent citizens would let no occasion pass for a taunt or a scornful word. During their encampment many practical jokes were played on the troops, one of which was particularly amusing. At the drum call to arms one morning, a thoroughly disguised man dashed in among them on horseback and in a very loud voice cried: "Hurry to Boston, the devil is to pay!" The troops were on the alert, however, and paid no attention to his cry.

Standing near "The Lindens" in those days was a large oak tree, to which culprits were tied and flogged. This was known as the whipping-post. Singularly enough a part of it was used for the sternpost of the frigate Essex.

Plate XVIII.—Dining Room, "The Lindens"; Chamber, "The Lindens."

In late September the British soldiers were withdrawn, and Hooper was given back his summer home. Still visible on the door is a large hole made by a musket ball which is said to have been fired to warn the Tory owner. A more probable legend, however, is that the gate-posts were ornamented with large balls showing lead ornaments attached, and that one day a party of patriots who were going by to join the army spied the precious metal and helped themselves to it to melt for bullets. This aroused the wrath of the owner, who came to the door and remonstrated in such a violent way that one of the men lifted his rifle and fired close by his head, the bullet entering the door.

The estate on which this house stands was originally a part of the Governor Endicott grant. It must be remembered that this grant covered one thousand acres.

At the death of the governor in 1665, this land which was owned by him came into controversy, and the courts were called upon to settle definitely the boundary line. A part of this grant fell into the hands of one Doctor Amos Putnam, familiarly known the country around as the good old Doctor Amos on account of his gentle manner and his extreme kindness to the poor. When he came into possession and how long he held it can never be definitely known, as there is no record of any deed passing until 1753, when we learn that the doctor and his good wife Hannah transferred the property to Doctor Robert Hooper of Marblehead, or as much of it as that on which the house stands, the exact number of feet not being recorded. This was in consideration of £186 13s. 4d. It is definitely known that the Marblehead merchant added to his original purchase from the fact that in 1755, two years later, more land was bought.

Robert Hooper, who erected this colonial mansion, though a man of lowly birth, was a wealthy merchant who lived in Marblehead. He possessed great prudence and sagacity, so that he rose to be a man of power and for a period of years practically monopolized the fishing industry of Marblehead. During his life there, he entertained in a most lavish way, rivalling Colonel Jeremiah Lee, not only in grandeur of equipage but in liberality as well. His name of "King" was given to him by the fishermen on account of his integrity and his personal honesty in dealing with them. His ships sailed to almost every part of the civilized world, and his name became well known in every country.

King Hooper erected a beautiful residence in Marblehead, one of the few elaborate mansions that still remain. It was a common sight in those days to see his magnificent equipages, drawn often by four prancing steeds, come dashing through Salem on his way to Danvers.

The first record of the Danvers house we find is in 1774. Who the builders were will always remain a mystery, but one fact can never be challenged: that the work was done honestly and well, and that McIntire must have been connected with its wood-carving as is shown from the fine examples which are to be found in the interior.

The house, as it now stands, is recognized as one of the best examples of provincial architecture in Massachusetts, ranking in the same class with the famous John Hancock house in Boston, which was later torn down.

Plate XIX.—Drawing Room, "The Lindens"; Library, "The Lindens."

The mansion, surrounded at the front by a stone wall, stands far back from the street. The entrance is by a wide, circular driveway enclosing a central grass plot of carefully shaven lawn, the decorative feature then as to-day being the magnificent elms that shaded the home. It received its name from the fact that lindens lined either side of the entrance drive. The grounds are extensive, mowing fields and grass land interspersed with fine old trees showing at the rear of the house. At the rear, also, is a fine old-fashioned garden carefully preserved, where appear the same kinds of flowers that blossomed in our grandmothers' day.

The building itself is a stern, dignified, two-story house with a gambrel roof. This is surrounded with a curved balustrade similar to that found in the Page house, as well as in many others of that period. At the front are four dormer windows, but the central feature is the high porch extending to the dentation in the roof and showing a pointed cap above. The Corinthian column supporting it on either side is an example of fine hand-carving, while the white trim corresponds picturesquely with the gray of the exterior. The house is panelled on the outside and painted to represent a stone house, although in reality it is wood. The entrance door is unique, lacking the distinguishing porch that is found on so many colonial homes. It is framed with white instead.

Just how long the estate was owned by Robert Hooper will never be definitely known. We find that later Judge Benager Collins lived there, thus giving the name of "Collins House" to the mansion. Subsequently Francis Peabody, one of Salem's most noted citizens, occupied this residence as his summer home until his death, when it passed into the hands of his son. During the elder Mr. Peabody's residence, the place was restored to its former dignity. The grounds were materially improved, and the garden was changed back to its original design.

Within the walls of this house have been entertained some of the most notable men in the country. Mr. Peabody was a lavish entertainer, and many important events occurred during the time of his residence. One of the most frequent visitors at the house was the late J. Pierpont Morgan.

Dignified and imposing as is the outside of the house, the interior is even more impressive. Entering the sturdy door that swings back on its long strap hinges, one finds himself in a wide hall extending entirely through the house and opening on to the old-fashioned garden in the rear. This remarkable hall shows some of the most wonderful wood-carvings found in any colonial home. This is particularly noticeable in the balustrades, probably McIntire's work. The newel post and the balustrade are of mahogany, the former most elaborately carved. The walls are hung above the panelling with a rich old-time paper, depicting different scenes in the story of the adventures of Telemachus.

Plate XX.—Chambers in "The Lindens."

The furniture throughout the house is of either the colonial type or massive old carved English pieces brought over centuries ago, most of them heirlooms that have descended in the family for many generations. On the extreme right are the stairs, rising by low treads; on the wide landing is a window flanked by pilasters on either side. On this same landing stands a rare colonial chair associated with the witchcraft times. The upper hall, practically a replica of the lower one, is wide and ample in its dimensions.

Opening from the hallway at the right is the library, finished in mahogany and showing an Oriental paper of the seventeenth century design. The mantel is one of McIntire's best, the central feature being a basket of flowers with festooned ornamentations on either side. Here, as in every room of the house, we find massive pieces of English oak, richly carved cabinets and chairs.

The drawing-room, also finished in mahogany, is perhaps the most elegant room in the house, with its fireplace of supporting pilasters rich in elaborate hand-carving. There is a dignity and charm that surrounds every room in this house, telling of the days when honest labor gave thorough workmanship. All through this mansion the woodwork is particularly impressive in its richness and careful finish of hand-carving.

The dining-room, a large room in the rear of the house, is in close harmony with the other apartments, the most notable feature here being the strap hinges of wrought brass. These show most unusual ornamentations, which differ from those on the entrance floor. Here the trim is painted white and gives a most effective background to the brass hinge. On every door is a ponderous brass lock of elaborate design. Few houses, even among the most famous found in this vicinity, can boast of more wonderful furniture and such a wealth of old-time wall-paper.

No two chambers are alike. Many of the fireplaces are particularly fine, as McIntire has taken special pains to give good samples of his work. The fireplace motive all through the house seemingly runs to baskets of flowers.

In the days of commercial prosperity, the Peabody family was among the most prominent of the Salem merchants. On the walls of "The Lindens" are many paintings of ships that were at one time in the service of the Peabodys.

The house to-day is owned by the son of the late Francis Peabody, who has kept it in perfect preservation and intact as in his father's day. Little wonder that romance clings about the place, leading one to tread reverently through the different rooms, where, during the colonial period, both American and English history were made.

CHAPTER V

THE ROGERS HOUSE

There was built in Peabody, Massachusetts, in the early part of the nineteenth century, one of the most magnificent colonial homes of the period. It still stands, a large, pretentious, two-storied house, known as "Oak Hill" and the summer residence of Mrs. Jacob C. Rogers. The house itself is in the center of well laid out grounds, being placed far back from the road and showing at the front a wide stretch of lawn interspersed with trees, one of which, a purple beech, is among the tallest and largest in New England.

Plate XXI.—The Rogers House, Peabody, Mass.

The avenue which starts between stone gate-posts shows a wide gravelled road lined on either side by magnificent trees, many of which were planted at the time of the house building. At the left, standing by itself, is a wonderful oak, notable for its symmetry and its height. It is from this tree that the house derives its name "Oak Hill." The grounds at the rear of the house show a garden that covers three acres, the garden proper being geometrically laid out with a fountain in the center and a sun-dial at the end. Back of it all are arches of woodbine that make a most effective setting for the floral display, while catalpa trees, weeping mulberry, and other varieties are found scattered through the estate.

At the left one comes upon the most wonderful feature of the place. It is a large lotus pond, where during the season are found many varieties of the Egyptian lotus, there being sometimes one hundred of these marvellous blossoms open at once. Just back of the house is a lily pond, which is laid out in a decorative manner. It shows many varieties, including the Cape Cod lily, the blue, the pink, and the white.

The grounds cover an area of two hundred acres, which are laid out at the front and sides in lawns resembling those of England. The rear gives a background of flowers, while beyond sweep to the boundary line extensive grain fields and vegetable gardens. Entrance to the grounds is through carved gateways, the boundary being a well built wall of stone.

In the early days these grounds belonged to Nathaniel West, who was a very noted merchant and the owner of the ship Minerva, the first of the Salem vessels that circumnavigated the globe. Nathan West married Elizabeth Derby, one of the daughters of Elias Hasket Derby, familiarly known as King Derby and who was one of the three merchant princes that led the commerce in Salem. The house, which at the time of its building was one of the most notable ever erected, was designed by a celebrated English architect and is a type of the Adams period. Originally it was much larger than it is now, for at the death of Mrs. West two portions of the house were detached and moved away to meet present-day requirements. The parts taken were so large that one of them to-day forms a private residence on Chestnut Street in Salem.

The Rogers house is colonial in design. It is two stories in height and was built at the time when wood-carving had reached the highest degree of excellence in the historic city by the sea, and when skilled workmen had been attracted there from every part of the land. Doubtless many of them were employed by Samuel McIntire on this house which contains some of his most wonderful work. These men, with the native ingenuity and wonderful skill in the handling of tools, took great pains to execute in wood what many of the master architects across the sea were doing in stone, more particularly as regards decorative molding. In studying the work on this house, one cannot too carefully take into consideration the tools which these men had to use, and the precision with which the fine scale detail is carefully thought out, making these workmen compare favorably with those of to-day.

Plate XXII.—Doorway, Rogers House.

The house where so much fine woodwork is shown is painted white, with green blinds, and is an exceptionally good example of what the century-old architecture in and around Salem stands for, possessing character, dignity, and grace such as is seldom found. This is particularly exemplified in the front doorway, the porch being perfectly balanced, its well proportioned fanlights and sidelights giving it rare dignity and refinement. Ornamentation in the balcony shows McIntire's work in baskets of flowers picturesquely carved, while the steps are flanked with marble vases filled with geraniums, the bright blossoms giving just the right touch of color to bring out the white of the house. The flooring of the porch is tiled, and the hallway is most imposing, the stairway being lined with pictures of the old masters, including Van Dykes, and Salvator Rosas, Oliver Cromwell proroguing the Long Parliament, Diogenes with his lantern hunting for an honest man, and many others. The dado here is most unusual, being fabric painted red, while the hand-painted landscape decorations show a section of the classic Zuber wall-paper.

The front entrance displays on the inside a well planned elliptical arch over the door, with a frieze motif of reeded sections between applied rosettes tied into the cornice, the charming pattern in these sashes being brought about by iron bent against the glass. In most houses of this period, as in this, the elliptical arch of the fanlight is echoed elsewhere in the house.

The staircase cannot fail to attract notice, with its twisted newel post and balusters and the molded mahogany railing. The box stairs with panelled ends show decorative brackets. It is interesting to note the twisted portion of the three balusters on each stair, each differing, although the tops and bottoms are alike. The newel, hand-carved and turned, is a specially good specimen of its type, and with the balusters, which are also hand-carved and turned, represent a direct development of the shipbuilding industry in their likeness to the rope moldings of the ship cabins, so much used in those days.

In this hallway the door caps are placed above the lintel, showing no supporting pilasters. They represent different designs of McIntire, in some cases showing baskets, in some flowers, and in others garlands.

Plate XXIII.—Parlor, Rogers House; Drawing Room, Rogers House.

The entire house is finished in white pine, a wood that is rather rare to-day but which shows lasting qualities. This is particularly noticeable in the drawing-room, which lies at the right of the hallway. Over the fireplace is a wonderful old painting representing Saturday Night. This is almost priceless in value, and shows a European peasant scene where little children are gathered around their grandmother for a good night parting.

The woodwork of this room is painted a soft brown, the carving on the mantelpiece showing Neptune with sheaves of wheat, and the whole is supported by Ionic columns. The center of the room at the rear is arched, showing wonderful carving, molded pilasters giving an effect that is fine and distinctive. Here we find, as through all the house, the marked individuality of the Adams period.

Inside this arch is a background of rich, dark red leather, on which are fastened wonderful old plates, many of them brought over by the ancestors of the owner, and without duplicates in this country. These plates are arranged to form a most artistic archway. Most of the prints on the wall are from Sir Joshua Reynolds' paintings. Upon the chimneypieces, not only in this room but also in the several others, it would seem as if McIntire had put his best work. They appear to stand out with exceptional grace and dignity, with charm of line and proportion. Here we find applied work of the most delicate nature and hand-carving that is exquisite in detail, adorning not only the moldings of cornice or frieze, but re-echoed in the pilasters of the over-mantel. The architrave of the mantelboard proper and its frieze, the capitals of the colonnettes, the edge of the shelf, and the molding that surrounds the panel over the chimney-breast, are masterpieces in bas-relief. The architectural treatment in this room convinces one of the great possibilities that lie in the white wood finish and how appropriate it is as a background for the rare pieces of old furniture that were used in our forefathers' day.

The living-room on the opposite side of the hall furnishes a most satisfactory tone for mahogany furniture in its white wood finish, there being a somber richness in the combination of the mahogany and white that is most harmonious. For instances of that, we have only to go back to our great-grandfathers' time, for a white finish was a popular fad in colonial days.

Over the mantel in this room is "Sunday Morning," a choice picture that is worthy of its setting. The casings of doorways which are often elaborated by the addition of a beautiful cornice and frieze, are further examples of McIntire's wonderful skill. Sometimes the cornice includes wonderful hand-carved molding showing between the dentiles fine spears which are supported by pilasters on each side. There are dainty grapevines and superbly modelled fruit baskets, while the door-cap frieze often shows dainty festoons and straight hanging garlands, with rosettes between. In the pilasters we find carved eagles and fruit-filled urns.

While most of these decorations are carved in wood, some of them are made in French putty and applied to the surface of the wood with glue. This idea is being carried out to-day by our leading decorators.

The morning-room is at the rear of the living-room, a large, handsome apartment opening on to the wide veranda, which is a feature of one side and approached by broad steps. The dining-room leads off the morning-room and is finished in English oak. The entire house, more especially in its interior decoration, is considered by architects all over the country to be one of the finest examples of colonial architecture that was built during the period of Salem's prosperity.

The furniture follows also the same period. Rarely in any private home does one find such a gathering of rare pieces of the three masters: Hepplewhite, Sheraton, and Chippendale. Most of these pieces, in fact practically all, are heirlooms which have descended directly from generation to generation, for this family has the distinction of being one of the oldest connected with Salem's early history.

It is fitting that McIntire should have put his best work into a house like this, where one finds no plain spaces, no wide panels without decoration, and no simple pilasters, for there is a dignity and a charm both in exterior and interior bespeaking not only wealth but good taste.

While the house does not contain as much old-time paper as do many of the residences of that day, yet the pieces that are shown are exceptional and comprise subjects such as one can seldom find. It is refreshing to find such a house as this, where great taste has been shown in the selection of furnishings, and where there is so much harmony in surroundings.

CHAPTER VI

THE COLONEL JEREMIAH LEE HOUSE

Of the many noted colonial houses found in New England, one of the most distinguished is the Colonel Jeremiah Lee house situated on Washington Street, in the picturesque old town of Marblehead, Massachusetts. The quaintness of Marblehead, situated on a rocky peninsula, is world renowned; and its name heads the list of patriotic towns in New England, for from its rugged shores went forth a larger majority of soldiers than from any other place of its size in our country.

Plate XXIV.—The Lee Mansion, Marblehead, Mass.

The celebrated Lee mansion, erected in 1768, is of the purest colonial type, and was the most costly residence ever built in this seaport town. Many traditions relate that the timber and the finish were brought over in one of the colonel's trading ships as ballast. However that may be, the material used was pine, such as was known in the old days as pumpkin pine. The trees of that species sometimes allow for boards four feet in width, and the fact that boards of this width are found in the Lee mansion is claimed by many to refute the idea of English wood, as the pines in the old country did not produce boards of such width when Jeremiah Lee commenced to build.

Standing back from the street behind a granite curb and iron paling is the old mansion, its dimensions being sixty-four feet by forty-six feet, and containing fifteen large rooms. The exterior was built of brick, over which were placed huge, bevelled, wooden clapboards, more than two feet in width, and one and a half in height. From a distance the observer might mistake the gray of the exterior for stone, as the block style of construction was employed, the wooden cube being painted and sanded to resemble dark gray rock.

Plate XXV.—Porch, Lee Mansion.

This gray wooden building, with its two wide-girthed chimneys pushing up from the red roof, has the same appearance as in the days when the first housewarming took place, in 1768. The handsome porch and the gray cupola are distinguishing features, and from the former in the olden days the colonel swept the seas with his spy-glass to watch for incoming ships just as sea captains do to-day.

In the early part of the eighteenth century Jeremiah Lee came to this country and settled at Manchester-by-the-Sea. The little that can be learned of him shows him to have been a keen trader, who took care to make his savings increase his income. In 1760 we find him living in Marblehead, prominent in town affairs and serving on important committees, being one of the Board of Fire-wards in the first fire department of the town. He was also one of the building committee that had charge of the construction of the powder house erected about that time.

Originally Lee was a Loyalist, but he later became a patriot and was foremost in all the movements that kindled the spirit of independence in the colonists. Before the struggle had fairly commenced, his career was cut short by an early death; otherwise he would have been as well known to posterity as was his intimate friend and fellow-townsman, Elbridge Gerry. As a member of the Province Committee of Safety and Supplies, which held a meeting on April 18, 1775, at Weatherby's Black Horse Tavern, situated on the highway between Concord and Lexington, he was among the number who decided to spend the night at the tavern rather than to go on to Lexington. The advance guard of the British troops was sighted in the early morning, and the colonel and his friends hastily dressed and escaped by a rear door, the colonel thereby contracting a cold from which he died.

During Lee's life in Marblehead he entertained royally in this mansion, which was erected at a cost of ten thousand pounds. Within a few steps of this mansion there was also a cooking-house, the same building being used to shelter the carriages of the family. Originally the large brick building now used for the store was made his slaves' quarters. Not long ago was found inside the house a small brass button, bearing the coat of arms of the Lee family, which was doubtless once worn on the livery of one of his slaves.

In the flagging that leads to the side door has lately been uncovered a central stone bearing the date of the erection of the house.

Plate XXVI.—Two Views of the Hallway, Lee Mansion.

As the ponderous front door swings open, one enters a grandly spaced hall, wainscoted waist high in solid mahogany. At the right is a deeply recessed window, and a door on either side of the hall leads into rooms beyond. Above the casing of these entrances runs the classic egg and tongue molding. The feature of the hallway is the wall-paper. This represents scenes of Grecian ruins, such as shattered columns, temples, landscapes, coats of mail, each set in a separate panel, handsomely carved. It is finished in soft tones of gray, beautifully blended, doubtless the highest development of early decorative art.

Plate XXVII.—Wallpapers, Lee Mansion.

At the rear of the hall, ascends the grand staircase, with boxed stairs spacious enough for several people to walk abreast. It is quite likely that the stair rail was made on the other side of the water. The finely turned balusters of regularly varying style, together with the exquisitely wrought carvings and delicate panels running along the side of the staircase, are expressive of the taste and skill which went into its building. A great, arched window, which floods the hall with light, is inserted at the landing, and is flanked by several pilasters, which seem to support the high ceiling encircled with heavily dentated corners, and heighten the effect of grandeur. From this lofty window the broad hall is lighted.

Plate XXVIII.—Wood Carving, Lee Mansion.

In this hallway at the time of Lafayette's visit to the house, the banquet tables were set. The ever-loyal ladies of Marblehead sent for the entertainment some of their choicest belongings: table-cloths of wonderful damask brought from over the seas, rare old silver, and choice English glass.

At the right of the hallway is the drawing-room in white and gray. Two Corinthian pilasters flank the fireplace, rising to the molding and following the line of the wall. The whole chimneyside of this room was panelled in huge white slabs. This was the living-room of the house, and here were doubtless entertained the members of the Secret Council.

Plate XXIX.—Banquet Hall, Lee Mansion; Fireplace, Lee Mansion.

On the opposite side of the hallway is the dining-room, which was known as the banquet hall. Here Washington was entertained, also Monroe and Jackson. This room shows a huge open fireplace and a richly carved mantel. So carefully have the chimneypieces been wrought, that there are no two alike in the large house.

The tiles in many of the fireplaces are fascinating. We find some quaint and humorous, while others are sentimental. There is the wide-skirted shepherdess climbing the stile with the aid of the swain, a sailor taking leave of his lass, a ship lying in the offing, nymphs and shepherdesses piping and playing. These tiles of blue and pale pink afford a study of interesting pictures to the lover of the antique.

In the former days scriptural texts and marble tablets were placed over the mantel in one of the chambers. One of these, a representation of Susannah and the Elders, was purchased from the family and is now found in the Independence Hall in Philadelphia.

Great care as to detail has been exercised in the finish of every room. Notwithstanding the talk of secret stairways and mysterious trap-doors, there is nothing at all uncanny about the place, which was built for comfort and good living.

It is easy to be carried back in imagination to the days when Colonel Lee and Mistress Martha, noted for their open-handed hospitality, dwelt in this mansion. Its great rooms echoed with the laughter of the gallants of the day, who in short clothes, silver buckles, and laces, made love to the stately dames in trailing gowns and powdered hair and danced in the state chamber over the parlor, used then as a dance hall.

In this house the venerable Marquis de Lafayette accepted the hospitality of the Lees, when he came to America in 1824 at the invitation of Congress, accompanied by his son, George Washington Lafayette. It was during this visit that he danced a minuet in the great southwest room. An old letter, discovered recently by Miss Dixie, of Marblehead, discloses the fact that her mother led the dance with the gallant Frenchman.

This room is panelled in wood of dark finish, with exquisite designs over the fireplace, where a shelf on consoles shows over it an ornate panel made from a single board and exquisitely carved. On the opposite side of the room is the large apartment which was originally used as a chamber, probably by Colonel Lee. Here the pictures all relate to the sea,—one of them depicting Neptune and another a fish.

Plate XXX.—Chamber, Lee Mansion; Four-poster, Lee Mansion.

The Lee mansion, like many of the Marblehead houses, stands with one foot on the land and the other almost on the water, bespeaking the maritime side of the community. Within the house, the arrangement of rooms and passages suggests the troublous times in the years just before the Revolution. A secret stairway connects two of the upper rooms, while the front hall shows a trap-door which led to the cellar. This doubtless gave rise to stories of intrigue but probably was concerned only with the contents of the cellar. A small cupboard door, leading apparently into a clothes-press, gave access to a narrow secret stair leading to a bedchamber above. A smaller panel, sounding hollow, was discovered to have a pair of hinges. On being opened, this revealed an iron safe with double doors, buried in the brick work of the chimney. Doubtless it was the private safe of Colonel Lee, for according to tradition there was always plenty of money in the house.

In the early days an effort was once made to surprise the bank of which Lee was an official. A party of men came into town after the closing hour, and meeting the genial colonel, explained that they had come to collect money on a note. Without a moment's hesitation, they were escorted to the Lee mansion, where the entire sum, which was an unusually large one, was paid by him in gold. This story has been vouched for by one of the earliest inhabitants of the historic town, and the finding of the safe discounts the idea of the secret closet being used for any other purpose. In the upper floor are plainly found marks of sliding panels to mask a retreat by secret floors and false walls to reach the garret.

The kitchen fireplace has been a recent discovery. When the house was restored, the fireplace was a practical but shallow affair, not showing the generous depths found in many houses of that day. In the process of repairs it was discovered that this was a false fireplace, back of which two feet more were found, and behind them the deep oven that had not been used for cooking since Massachusetts Bay was a royal colony. This kitchen fireplace is believed to be in what was used as the family dining-room, for doubtless the cooking was done in the slave quarters, much as in the Southern homes, the food being brought into the house through a covered passageway.

In the early days, a little after the building of the house, there was a great demand for lead to make bullets for the Continental army. It has been discovered that in the upper casements of the house, in rooms which were rarely occupied, the lead weights are wanting. This leads one to believe that the old tradition of their being melted during the time of the Revolution for ammunition may be true.

In the attic is a mark which shows the house to have been built by English architects. This is an inside dormer window used in those days by architects in the motherland for ventilation. This idea is rarely if ever carried out in a house where the architects or master builders are of this country.

On the death of Colonel Lee, the house was occupied by his widow, who continued to extend hospitality to the townspeople and visitors from other places, much as during her husband's lifetime. At her death the estate passed into the hands of her son, and afterwards was owned and occupied by Judge Samuel Sewall.