Historic Houses of Salem
This winter has been a challenge. Not only with everything that is going on in the world but also with the weather…I live in New England and we expect and accept cold, rain, snow, and wind but not every week. It is a winter when boots are much more popular than shoes. Where shovels and snowblowers are flipping snow like pancakes. And if it isn’t snowing the wind is blowing anything that isn’t nailed down, flying. You might find your trash barrel two streets over if you are lucky. And after a while you could no longer say in earnest we are tough, we are rooted in New England weather. It became hard and long and it’s just the first of March with many more winter days to endure. The good thing about New England weather though is just when you are at your wit’s end, the sun shines, the sky gets really blue, the wind goes on vacation for a few days, and the snow stops and settles down to the most glorious white fluff and dresses up all the trees and bushes in it’s best winter white sprinkles. The angle of light creates deep shadows on doors, windows, houses, and sidewalks. It is a day that your heart calls you to go chase the light. So you dress warm and then your boots take you and your camera for a walk. It’s a day when you are so grateful to live in New England because nowhere else knows how to light up winter as we do.
You could just step out your door and start snapping and you would find beauty. Or, you could go to the beach and really immerse yourself in the wonder of Mother Nature with the rolling ocean, blue sky, and gentle breeze…and where is the sand you say, it’s under the soft floating snow. There are backroads with stone walls and horses to entertain you if you like to stay inland. Or you can roam an open field and talk to the trees with their white finery on. They love being dressed up just for you. This day though, I choose my hometown of Salem, Massachusetts. It’s a city, but its history and beauty still amaze me all these many years later. I took Fuji out for a walk and we went to the Historic District on this day. The streets are wide in some parts and then in other areas, there are tiny little streets. Great big houses and tiny little cottages, all holding the history of days gone by. What I love most about this time of year there, are the deep shadows that the old clapboard houses hold. The designs remind me of stunning artwork being drawn with beautiful flowing lines by twigs and branches. The streets and stairs trimmed in white snow and every doorway a delight to visit, showing off their beautiful treats and ornaments. These roads and little hideaway streets have been here since the 1600s and each historic house displays its plaque of when it was built and who lived there. A fascinating area to get lost in for a few hours in any season. The good news is that each season brings its own unique beauty and mystery. For me, I love them all but for now, it’s winter…and my boots are made for walking. Come along as we visit this part of New England where long ago the Witches traveled by broom…but not in this neighborhood.
The photo above is so beautiful with its New England white paint and black shutters. You will see lots of that around here. I love this house for its sweeping stairway and the great trees that shade that stairway. The branches sway and flow as if the trees were dancing. Add a bit of the fluffy stuff and you have a traditional New England home in winter.
The area we are visiting today is Chestnut St and a short part of Federal St. Samuel McIntire was a famous architect and craftsman, best known for his work in the Chestnut St. district. Most of the houses here are classic Federal-style architecture. Chestnut St. is a wide avenue with lots of trees and brick sidewalks. When I was growing up I didn’t know much about it except that it was where the “rich people lived”. So I never really went to that area. Now I spend lots of time there with my camera. It is sort of tucked away from the main roads and it is a nice place to take a stroll and imagine what life must have been like way back when. The Chestnut street district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and the area was slightly enlarged in 1978. Let me show you some of the favorites that I visited on this snow day in March.
Unfortunately I didn’t take down the name of this house but the plaque tells me it was built in 1802. I love the color and and the doorway with the spider web glass above the door and with the gas lanterns on the sides. What I especially love though are the curtains, pulled forward and tied in the middle. The winter light and shadows from the tree make it a little bit spooky, don’t you think?
The brick houses are usually the ones that everyone associates with Samuel McIntire. There are many of them through the city of Salem, some here on Chestnut St. but many more down along the Salem Common. The other noticeable item that he used a lot was the black, wrought iron fences. Always, shutters, and on the brick houses, mostly black. This house does not have a plaque that I can see but notice that it does have the same spider web design in the glass above the door. By the looks of the snow on the steps…this front door does not get a lot of use in winter.
This is another of McIntire’s houses that were opened in 1806 as museum. This is the Stephen Phillips House and museum. Phillips House was owned by Elias Hasket Derby, one of America’s first self-made millionaires from the sea trade. The house does have the black shutters and beautiful windows throughout with lovely porches for sitting out in the garden in the summer. This time the fence is white but you can see that the next house went back to the wrought iron. I do love these old snarly shaped trees that seem to be abundant on Chestnut St.
The blue house with the gorgeous, rich wood door is one of my favorites. Wrought Iron rail and wonderful windows with lovely curtains. I love the color of this house and it doesn’t appear to be as old as some of the others and I’m thinking it might not even be a McIntire but it surely belongs on Chestnut St. The street is a long sweeping street with houses and doorways of many colors and styles, all in impeccable condition and they carry on, one next to the other in great continuity. The window and treatments are usually wonderfully attractive and those windows are spotless. I always leave this area thinking I should go right home and clean my windows. I do appreciate the quietness of the street and the beauty.
I thought we might take a little hop over to Federal Street which runs parallel to Chestnut while we were here in the middle of the street. It’s a short walk down a small street to get here. It’s not as well known to outsiders as Chestnut Street but it does have some unique houses of it’s own, which we will visit again later but on this day I only stopped at this one. Unlike Chestnut St. which I didn’t visit often growing up, Federal St. was a street I often took on my walk to and from the Salem High School. I lived on Bridge St…and I liked to switch up my route every once in a while so I would choose Federal St frequently. When I got to the top of Federal, I would be very close to the school. My walk to school was at least two miles each way. I’ve been saying for 50 years that I was going to check the milage and I think I should do that soon. Anyway, I have photographed this beautiful building many times. It is a McIntire building but somewhere along the way it was sold to the Peabody Essex Museum as part of their ongoing expansion in Salem. I love the doorway and the gate. The color reminds me of melted butter. The brick work out front is stunning and most of Federal St. is still paved in bricks. I’m not sure what the museum is using the building for now. I’ll add that to my list of things to find out for my next trip through the area. And of course, the building has the best selection of trees that grow into each other to make a beautiful arch over the doorway to the entrance of the museum. On the left side there is also a deep, gorgeous manicured garden. Perfect for sitting in the summer with a great book and the building is open year round. A quick note…about my walking Federal Street to get school. If I had the money, 10 cents, I could stop at Eaton’s drug store and get a bag of chips and one of those huge dill pickles in the barrel for my breakfast…I know, it doesn’t sound like breakfast food but I sure did love it. The thing is 10 cent was hard to come by in those days.
I took this photo to give you some idea of the street and the houses…brick streets, wide sidewalks, all houses have a fence of some sort and all the doorways are beautifully painted in vibrant colors as are most of the houses with some of the doorways decorated all year long. Lots of trees, most hanging over the sidewalk and on a sunny day the shadows on the houses and walks are so interesting. It’s not a busy area, very residential, so it’s a lovely place to just take a stroll. When I was little, every once in awhile I would veer off of Federal Street if I saved my dime for the way home and I would walk slowly down Chestnut St. I would imagine what it must be like to live in a big house like those houses. I loved to try to get a peek in the windows. They truly were beyond my imagination. We lived in the working class section of Salem where lots of houses like mine were two family dwellings with a tiny yard. I look back now and know, even with all of this loveliness, I was more fortunate to have grown up where I did. But in those days I would have liked to have gotten inside one of these beauties. You know, the grass is always greener story. Lessons learned.
Two more beautiful Historic houses are in yellow but both with different colors for their doors. The one on the left has a historic plaque, the one on the right does not. Still old but maybe did not have anyone famous living there. But look at those deep tree shadows on that red door, climbing up the front of the house. These shadows are so perfect because Salem has such a creepy history. I just love it. I also love the deep purple door with the green shutters.
Keeping with the colors, this one stands out before you even get to it. The bright blue with the ruby red trim on the windows. Do you notice that most of the front steps are the same on all the houses. I’m sure it was a McIntire design. White pillar fencing is also seen on many of the houses. And of course the late afternoon winter shadows.
This is one of my favorite streets. It is off of Chestnut and it is only open for cars to the residence of the street. It’s a very narrow street and I have driven down it but I’m always thankful when I get to the other end. Fortunately, it’s also a very short street. The houses are so cute and so unique and they have charming little yards with interestingly decorated little porches. I always feel like I would just love to sit in one of those wicker rockers, with a chintz cushion, having a cup of tea in a Royal Dalton china cup or perhaps a glass of wine in a small Waterford crystal glass while reading or naping. It’s the kind of porch more suited for a cat than a dog. It should be a no barking zone. Tall brick walls, amazing colors and lots of puddles for reflections when the snow melts or the rain comes in buckets. And yes, gas lanterns. It is always a good idea to take a side street when in Salem.
Another view of the street from the opposite side. Wide street, and only one-way, roomy sidewalks, which I’m surprised were not shoveled. When I was growing up it was required for every house to shovel their sidewalks and if you didn’t you would be fined. You can be sure my mother had my brothers out there at the crack of dawn cleaning our walk. The houses here on this side are large and support great big back yards along with huge side yards. Try to imagine all those trees in bloom all summer long and the vibrant colors of them in the Fall.
I saved the best for last. I truly love the little houses over the big houses. So much character and history. The address is 1 1/2 Cambridge St. It was built in 1740 for Samuel Curwen, Merchant. He had a little shop in the back there on the right. In 1811 it was sold to Nathaniel Bowditch who resided there until 1823. It is hard to see from the photo but it is really small but still has the decorative doorway and I wish you could see the window panes, they are all wonky and squiggly. It has a birch tree out front and a tiny yard almost like the fairies live here. I’m not sure if this one is open for viewing but I need to check that out. Also, notice that most of the doorways in this section of Salem have the V cornice above the door and pillars on either side. The color suits the house perfectly and of course, the brick steps. Nathaniel Bowditch had quite a history and if you would like to read more about him just follow this link:
I hope you enjoyed my little trip down Chestnut Street with a few detours. Salem is noted for its witch trials and dark history but it is so much richer than that. It was a huge sea port in its day. It still has ships in its old port but now for visiting at Pickering Wharf. That is another section of Salem worth visiting. Completely different than Chestnut St. I think I value my city now more than I ever did growing up. It takes growing and moving away and then coming back to see one’s hometown from a different perspective. Some day I will take you to the section of Salem where I was born. There is nothing historic about it but it was, in hindsight a great place to grow up even though times were really tough. I like looking at Salem now through both lenses.