Swett–Ilsley House facts for kids
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The Swett–Ilsley House is a very old house in Newbury, Massachusetts, USA. It was built around 1670, which was during the time of Colonial America. Today, the house is owned by an organization called Historic New England. They use it as a special place where people can study and learn about old buildings. It's like a living museum!
Contents
The House's Early Days
The first part of the Swett–Ilsley House was built in 1670. A man named Stephen Swett, who was one of the first people to settle in Newbury, built it. This first section was a single room with a chimney. It faced south to catch the sun.
How the House Grew Over Time
For about 50 years, the house stayed mostly the same. But around 1720, it got bigger! Another room was added to the north side. This new room even had its own door. A new roof was built over both parts of the house. This changed the way the roof pointed. The chimney was kept, but its top part was probably changed too.
More Additions and New Uses
The house kept growing throughout the 1700s and 1800s. It was used for many different things during this time. It was a place where people sold tobacco. It was also a chocolate mill, where chocolate was made. And it even served as a tavern, a place where people could eat and drink.
The house got even longer to the north. Because of the shape of the land, the east wall ended up being a bit shorter than the west wall. The very first chimney was taken down. A new, bigger chimney was built in the middle. This new chimney served both the 1670 and 1720 parts of the house.
In 1756, the house got its final big addition. More land was bought to the north. This allowed another room to be added. This new section had its own chimney and a staircase. The house also got a kitchen lean-to on its western side. This kitchen had one of the biggest fireplaces from that time. It even had three special ovens called beehive ovens!
Saving History: The Restoration
In 1911, the Swett–Ilsley House was bought by the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities (SPNEA). This group is now called Historic New England. It was the very first old building they ever bought to save!
What Restoration Means
Restoration means carefully fixing up an old building. The goal is to make it look like it did a long time ago. With the help of an architect named Henry Charles Dean, SPNEA started working on the house. They removed layers of plaster and wood. This showed the original wooden beams and old wall panels from the 1700s. They also uncovered one of the biggest fireplaces in all of New England.
A Unique Look
The restoration work stopped when they ran out of money. Because of this, some very old features, like diamond-shaped window panes, were not put back. This means the outside of the house still looks like it did in the 1700s. But the inside shows parts from both the 1600s and early 1700s.
After the restoration, people rented the house. They even ran a tea room there for many years. Since 1965, the Swett–Ilsley House has been a study museum. It helps people learn about how homes were built and changed over hundreds of years.
