Nickels-Sortwell House facts for kids
The Nickels-Sortwell House is an old house that is now a museum. It is located at 121 Main Street in Wiscasset, Maine, United States. A rich ship captain built the house in 1807. It is a great example of the Federal style of building. Because of its special design, it was named a National Historic Landmark in 1970. For much of the 1800s, the house was used as a hotel. In 1900, a family bought it to live in. Later, in 1958, it was given to Historic New England, a group that protects old places. You can visit the house and take tours from May to October.
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Nickels-Sortwell House
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U.S. Historic district
Contributing property |
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Front of the house
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 Location in Maine
Location in the United States
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| Location | 121 Main St. (corner of Federal) Wiscasset, Maine |
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| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1807 |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| Part of | Wiscasset Historic District (ID73000242) |
| NRHP reference No. | 70000078 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | December 30, 1970 |
| Designated NHL | December 30, 1970 |
| Designated CP | January 12, 1973 |
Contents
About the Nickels-Sortwell House
The Nickels-Sortwell House faces south on Main Street (United States Route 1) in Wiscasset. It is a three-story wooden house. It is about 83 feet (25 meters) long, including a back part called an ell. The house has a roof that slopes gently on all sides. It sits on a strong stone base made of granite.
Outside the House
The front of the house is covered with smooth, flat boards. The rest of the house has overlapping wooden planks, called clapboards. On the first floor, the middle three sections have slightly sticking out arches. The main entrance section is a bit wider. The front door has flat columns (pilasters) and thin windows on the sides. These windows have cool oval designs. A half-circle window is above the door with similar designs.
A porch (portico) covers the entrance. It has four fancy columns called Corinthian columns. A decorative railing is on top of the porch. Above the middle arches, four more fluted Corinthian pilasters go up to the roof. The other windows are all the same. There is a special Palladian window on the second floor in the center. A half-round window is on the third floor. It has designs like those near the entrance.
Inside the House
The inside of the house has a changed central-hall layout. The main hall is split by a wall. This creates a front public hall and a back service hall. The service hall leads to rooms in the back ell. The front hall is shaped like a half-oval. An arch divides it across the middle.
Doors in the front part lead to large living rooms on the left and right. A spiral staircase goes up in the center. The house still has much of its original wooden details. This includes window seats and shutters that fold into the walls.
History of the Nickels-Sortwell House
Captain William Nickels, a ship owner, built this house in 1807. The house shows how rich and stylish the town was back then. This was a time when shipbuilding and trading by sea brought a lot of money to Wiscasset. Captain Nickels had been very successful. But he lost his money because of the Embargo of 1807 and the War of 1812. He died in 1815.
From 1820 to 1900, the house was used as a hotel. During this time, some changes were made inside. For example, some bedrooms were divided into smaller ones.
The Sortwell Family
In 1899, Alvin F. Sortwell from Cambridge, Massachusetts, bought the house. His family redecorated it in a popular style called Colonial Revival. The Sortwells added a sunroom (solarium) in the northeast corner. They also added the current front porch. This new porch replaced an older, wider porch from when the house was a hotel.
The Sortwells also bought back some land behind the house. This land had been sold off from Captain Nickels' property. They built a carriage house there. Charles Eliot II designed the garden between the house and the carriage house. He was from the Olmsted Brothers company, which designs landscapes.
Frances Sortwell, Alvin and Gertrude Sortwell's daughter, gave the house to the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities in 1958. This group is now called Historic New England.
Visiting the House Today
The Nickels-Sortwell House was named a National Historic Landmark in 1970. It was also added to the National Register of Historic Places that same year. It is also part of the Wiscasset Historic District, which was listed in 1973.
You can visit the house for tours from June 1 to October 15. There is a fee to enter, but members of Historic New England can visit for free. You can even rent part of the house for a short vacation stay. This means you can spend the night at the Nickels-Sortwell House!
