Bellingham–Cary House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Bellingham–Cary House
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 Location in Massachusetts
Location in the United States
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| Location | 34 Parker St., Chelsea, Massachusetts |
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| Area | 1.2 acres (0.49 ha) |
| Built | 1724 |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| NRHP reference No. | 74000908 |
| Added to NRHP | September 06, 1974 |
The Bellingham–Cary House is a really old house in Chelsea, Massachusetts. It's now a historic house museum, which means people can visit it to learn about the past. This house was built in 1724. Some people think parts of it might even be from a hunting lodge built in 1659 by an early governor named Richard Bellingham. It's special because it's the only building left in Chelsea from the 1700s! It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 because of its importance.
Contents
Discovering the Bellingham–Cary House
What Does the House Look Like?
The Bellingham–Cary House is in a quiet, tree-lined part of Chelsea. It's a two-story house made of wood. It has a special roof shape called a "truncated hip roof" and two chimneys inside. The outside is covered with "clapboards," which are long, thin wooden boards.
The front of the house has five windows and a main door in the middle. The door has fancy columns and a small roof over it. There are also three small windows on the roof, called dormers. A two-story section extends from the back of the house.
A Glimpse into History: Who Lived Here?
Richard Bellingham: An Early Governor
Richard Bellingham was an important person from England. He helped create the Massachusetts Bay Company. This company officially started the Massachusetts Bay Colony and founded Boston in 1630.
Bellingham came to Boston in 1634. He served three terms as the governor of the colony until he passed away in 1672. Soon after he arrived, he bought most of the land that is now Chelsea. He also bought a ferry service that connected Chelsea and Boston.
In 1659, Bellingham built a hunting lodge on his land. This lodge became his summer home.
The Cary Family and House Expansion
After Governor Bellingham's death, a part of his land, including the house, eventually went to the Cary family in 1741. The Cary family lived in the house for many years. They made the house bigger several times.
Around 1791, Samuel Cary greatly expanded the house. This is when it got the look it has today.
Preserving a Piece of the Past
After Samuel Cary and his wife passed away, most of the farm land was sold for new buildings. However, the house stayed in the Cary family until 1914. That year, a local non-profit group was formed to save the house.
Since then, the Governor Bellingham–Cary House Association has owned the house. They work to preserve it and share its history. In 2006, the house won the Massachusetts Historical Commission Preservation Award. In 2008, scientists used a method called dendrochronology (tree-ring dating) to find out that the oldest part of the house was built in 1724.
See also
- List of the oldest buildings in Massachusetts
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Suffolk County, Massachusetts
