Parker Tavern facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Parker Tavern
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Parker Tavern in 2008
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 Location in Massachusetts
Location in the United States
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| Location | 103 Washington Street, Reading, Massachusetts |
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| Built | 1694 |
| Architectural style | Colonial |
| MPS | Reading MRA (AD) |
| NRHP reference No. | 75000286 |
| Added to NRHP | August 19, 1975 |
The Parker Tavern is an old house in Reading, Massachusetts, United States. It is now a historic house museum, which means you can visit it to learn about history. Built in 1694, it is the oldest building still standing in Reading.
A farmer and blacksmith named Abraham Bryant built this unique saltbox-style house. Later, in the 1700s, Ephraim Parker ran a tavern (a kind of old inn or restaurant) there. Since 1923, the Parker Tavern has been a local history museum. It was officially recognized as an important historic place in 1975.
About the Parker Tavern
The Parker Tavern is on the south side of Washington Street. It is west of Main Street and not far from the Reading train station. The building sits on a flat, grassy area and faces west.
It is a two-and-a-half story wooden building. It has a sloping roof on the sides and wooden shingles on the outside. The house also has a strong stone foundation. The front of the house is four sections wide. There are two windows to the left of the main door and one window to the right. The door and window frames are simple. The back of the building has a roof that slopes down extra far. This gives it the classic look of a New England saltbox house.
A Look Back in Time
In 1693, Abraham Bryant, who worked with metal, bought the land where the house now stands. The next year, he had to pay much more in taxes. This probably means the house was built by 1694. His family lived in the house until the 1730s.
After that, Ebenezer Nichols owned the house. He worked with animal hides and was important in town government. The next owner was Ephraim Parker. He was the great-grandson of Thomas Parker, who helped start the town of Reading. Ephraim Parker lived here until he passed away in 1804.
Ephraim Parker was allowed to run a tavern in the house between 1770 and 1785. He fought in the Battle of Lexington and Concord. This battle was at the very start of the American Revolutionary War. During the war, Parker kept a British officer named Colonel Archibald Campbell as a prisoner of war. Campbell's group of soldiers was caught on a ship in Boston Harbor in 1776. Colonel Campbell stayed at the tavern until 1778. Then, he was traded for another important American, Ethan Allen.
For most of the 1800s, the Sweetser family owned the house. The town of Reading bought it in 1916. Then, in 1923, they sold it to the Reading Antiquarian Society for a very small amount of money. The society has run the Parker Tavern as a historic house museum ever since. It is usually open on Sundays from 2 to 5 PM, between May and October.
More to Explore
- List of the oldest buildings in Massachusetts
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Reading, Massachusetts
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Middlesex County, Massachusetts
