Cushman Tavern facts for kids
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Cushman Tavern
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Formerly listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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Photo taken October 2019
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 Location in Maine
Location in the United States
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| Location | ME 9 at Webster Corner Rd., Lisbon, Maine |
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| Built | 1825 |
| Architect | Wood, Orison |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| NRHP reference No. | 79000125 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | October 9, 1979 |
| Removed from NRHP | November 25, 2020 |
The Cushman Tavern was a very old building in Sabattus and Lisbon, Maine. It started as a public inn, or "tavern," and later became a private home.
Built around 1825, this house was special because of its unique artwork. The walls of its hallways and stairwell had beautiful folk art drawings. These were made by Orison Wood, an artist who traveled around painting murals. He was a student of Rufus Porter, another famous mural painter.
The Cushman Tavern was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. Sadly, the house was taken down in 2019 after being empty for several years. It was then removed from the historic places list in 2020.
What Was the Cushman Tavern?
The Cushman Tavern was a large, two-and-a-half-story wooden house. It stood at the corner of Webster Corner Road and Middle Road (Maine State Route 9). The property was unique because it was located right on the border between the towns of Lisbon and Sabattus.
The main part of the house had a roof that sloped down on two sides. It also had two chimneys inside. Several smaller sections, called "ells," connected the house to a barn. The front of the house faced west. It had a main door with windows on the sides and a special half-round window above.
A Look Inside: The Famous Murals
The house was built around 1825 by a person named Mr. Dwindal. Just two years later, Samuel Cushman bought it. The Cushman family ran the building as a tavern for many years. Later, it became a regular family home.
The most important part of the house was its amazing murals. These were paintings on the walls of the first and second-floor hallways. They also decorated the stairwell that connected the floors.
These artworks were created by Orison Wood. He was a traveling artist who painted frescoes, which are murals done on wet plaster. Orison Wood was known to be working in the area in the late 1820s. The Cushman family often told stories about how the painter arrived in 1826 and offered to paint their walls.
Orison Wood learned how to paint frescoes from his father. But he got his ideas for what to paint from the writings of Rufus Porter. Porter's artwork can still be seen on walls across northern New England today. Some people even think that Rufus Porter might have helped Orison Wood with these specific paintings.
The Tavern's Final Years
The Cushman Tavern became empty around 2014 after one of its owners passed away. It remained empty until 2019. By 2018, the town of Sabattus said the building was no longer safe. It was then scheduled to be taken down in late 2019. Luckily, some of the beautiful artwork from inside the house was saved before it was demolished.
