James Leavitt House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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James Leavitt House
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 Location in Maine
Location in the United States
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| Location | 6 Old Alfred Rd Waterboro, Maine |
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| Area | 3 acres (1.2 ha) |
| Built | 1850 |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 04001051 |
| Added to NRHP | September 22, 2004 |
The James Leavitt House is a historic home in Waterboro Center, Maine. It was built in 1850 for a rich merchant named James Leavitt. This house shows off the Greek Revival style of architecture. It is made of wood and sits on a strong granite foundation.
Today, the James Leavitt House is a special place. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The town of Waterboro now owns it. They run it as a museum called the Taylor/Frey/Leavitt House Museum. This lets visitors see what life was like long ago.
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Who Was James Leavitt?
James Leavitt moved to Waterboro Center from nearby Alfred, Maine, between 1830 and 1840. He was a very smart businessman. He had several different ways of making money.
What Kind of Businesses Did James Leavitt Own?
James Leavitt bought and sold farm goods. He would take local produce to big cities like Portland and Boston. He also ran a general store close to his house. People could buy many things there.
Leavitt also had a unique business idea. He bought fabric that was already cut in Boston. He then gave this fabric to women in the area. These women would sew the fabric into men's suits, shirts, and pants. Leavitt then sold these finished clothes back to stores in Boston. He often made a good profit. Instead of money, the women earned credits to use at his store. Leavitt kept detailed records of these deals. You can still see these records at the Leavitt House today.
Why Was the James Leavitt House Built?
James Leavitt's businesses helped him become very wealthy. He wanted a grand home to show his success. The James Leavitt House was finished in 1850. It was designed to be fancy inside.
The house has two stories and many rooms. James Leavitt, his wife, and their 12 children lived there. The inside has detailed wooden decorations. These include fancy moldings and carved corner blocks. These details were rare in homes in rural Maine at that time. The house still has its original fancy wallpaper. It also features some of the best wood-graining in the state.
What is Wood-Graining?
Wood-graining is a special painting technique. It makes wood look like a different, more expensive type of wood. The amount of wood-graining in the Leavitt House is amazing. It suggests that a skilled artist did the work. Someone like Jason Hamilton, a "fancy painter" from nearby Sanford, might have done it.
The grain painting at the Leavitt House is very artistic. It doesn't just copy natural wood. Instead, it combines different patterns. For example, you can see patterns like "birds-eye maple" and "tiger-maple" together on the doors. There are even painted pictures of a rooster and a swan on the back doors of two cabinets.
Who Lived in the House After James Leavitt?
The Leavitt House was built in what was once the busiest part of Waterboro Center. It is a very large home. It has seven bedrooms on its second floor. After James Leavitt died around 1880, the house became a second home for his family.
James Leavitt's son, Benjamin, became a successful merchant in Saco, Maine. He used his father's home as a summer house. After Benjamin Leavitt passed away, his daughter Louella Frey inherited the home. Later, it went to her two daughters. One of them was writer Helen Taylor. She wrote her book A Time to Recall about her family home. Mrs. Taylor's three sons sold the house to the town of Waterboro in 1989.
James Leavitt was born in Alfred, Maine, in 1797. He married Lovey Stevens from York, Maine. He died on September 7, 1876, in Waterboro Center. His wife had died earlier, in 1825. Both are buried in Waterboro Center, near the house they built.
Today, the house is a local history museum. It helps people learn about the past.
See also
Images for kids
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The James Leavitt House, also known as the Taylor/Frey/Leavitt House Museum.
