Interiors

Buckman Tavern Kitchen, Lexington, Massachusetts

by

The kitchen at Buckman Tavern in Lexington, Massachusetts, around 1928-1940. Image courtesy of Phillips Library, Peabody Essex Museum, Samuel Chamberlain Photograph Negatives Collection.

The scene in 2023:

These two photos show the kitchen at Buckman Tavern in Lexington. This building is perhaps the most famous landmark from the first day of the American Revolution, as it was here that the Lexington militiamen gathered in the early morning hours of April 19, 1775 prior to the arrival of the British forces from Boston. The opening shots of the war were subsequently fired outside on town common in front of the tavern, and at least one bullet pierced the front door of the building. Later in the day, as the fighting spread out along the road between Concord and Boston, two wounded British soldiers were brought to the tavern, and one of them died here.

The tavern itself was built around 1710, and for many years it was operated by John Muzzy. It was later acquired by John Buckman, who married Muzzy’s granddaughter Ruth in 1768, and he ran the tavern until his death in 1792. During the 19th century, the building was owned by Rufus Merriam and his descendants, and it was ultimately acquired by the town of Lexington in 1913.

Since then, the tavern has been preserved as a museum. The top photo shows the kitchen as it appeared during the first half of the 20th century. It is located behind the tap room, which is on the other side of the door on the left side of the photo. Today, the kitchen still looks much the same as it did more than 80 years ago, aside from some of the items being rearranged over the years. The building is still owned by the town, and it is leased to the Lexington Historical Society. Along with Munroe Tavern and the Hancock-Clarke House, it is one of three historic buildings in Lexington that are open to the public seasonally for tours.

Northeast Bedroom, Munroe Tavern, Lexington, Massachusetts

by

The northeast bedroom on the second floor of Munroe Tavern in Lexington, probably around 1940. Image courtesy of Phillips Library, Peabody Essex Museum, Samuel Chamberlain Photograph Negatives Collection.

The room in 2023:

As explained in a previous post, Munroe’s Tavern was built in 1735, and it functioned as a tavern throughout most of the 18th century and in the first half of the 19th century. By the 1770s, it was operated by William Munroe, and during the battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775 it was briefly commandeered by British redcoats, who used it as a temporary headquarters and field hospital.

This bedroom is located in the northeast corner of the house, directly above the bar room. As noted in the building’s 2010 historic structure report, this was the less formal of the two main bedrooms, and as a result it had less detailed trim around the fireplace, in contrast to the more formal bedroom on the other side of the stair hall. These two photos were taken from the southeastern corner of the room, next to the doorway to the front stairs. On the left is the fireplace, and in the distance is the doorway to the back hallway.

The tavern was converted to a private residence around 1850, and then in 1860 William Munroe’s grandson, William Henry Munroe, inherited the property. He modernized much of the interior, including replacing the original doors with new ones that had doorknobs rather than latches. He used this room as his bedroom, and he lived in the house until his death in 1902.

In 1911, the tavern was acquired by the Lexington Historical Society, and it subsequently underwent a restoration in 1939 on both the interior and exterior. The top photo was taken shortly after this work was completed, and it shows the replacement door and hardware that reflects the style that would have originally been used in the house. According to the historic structure report, it seems unclear exactly how much of the room is original material, such as floorboards and plaster walls, and how much of it was replaced in the restoration, but overall these elements are consistent with 18th century construction.

Today, the room looks a little different from when the top photo was taken over 80 years earlier. The furniture has been rearranged and the room looks less cluttered, and the wallpaper is different, likely for historical accuracy. Some of the objects appear to the the same ones in both photos, just in different locations, including the washstand and the mirror above it. The tavern is still owned by the Lexington Historical Society, and it is seasonally open to the public for tours. The organization likewise operates Buckman Tavern and the Hancock-Clarke House, both of which are similarly preserved in their 18th century appearances.

Bar Room, Munroe Tavern, Lexington, Massachusetts

by

The bar room at Munroe Tavern in Lexington, probably around 1940. Image courtesy of Phillips Library, Peabody Essex Museum, Samuel Chamberlain Photograph Negatives Collection.

The scene in 2023:

As explained in more detail in the previous post, Munroe Tavern is an important historic landmark due to its involvement in the start of the American Revolution. On April 19, 1775, during the battles of Lexington and Concord, Earl Percy commandeered the tavern to use as his temporary headquarters and as a field hospital.

Here in the bar room, wounded redcoats received medical attention while others helped themselves to the tavern’s food and drink. One redcoat apparently fired his gun into the ceiling, and the portion of the plaster with the hole has been preserved in its original location, although it is not visible in these photos. The redcoats spent about two hours here before continuing their retreat to Boston. On their way out, they stacked the furniture in the center of the room and lit it on fire, but it was quickly extinguished after they left.

The building remained in use as a tavern until around 1850, and it was subsequently converted into a house. Around 1860 it underwent significant modernizations on both the interior and exterior. This occurred during the ownership of William Henry Munroe, grandson of the William Munroe who had operated the tavern during the Revolution. He lived here until his death in 1902, and then in 1911 the tavern was acquired by the Lexington Historical Society.

In 1939, the Lexington Historical Society extensively restored the tavern on both the interior and exterior. The top photo was likely taken soon after this work was completed, and it shows a portion of the room, including the fireplace. According to the 2010 document Historic Structure Report: The Munroe Tavern, Lexington, Massachusetts, much of the existing material in the room dates to the 1939 restoration, including the floorboards, the doors, windows, window trim, hardware, and the plaster ceiling. However, there are still some original features. The framing is presumably original, along with the cupboards over the mantel and the bricks in the firebox. The mantel itself is not original, but it likely dates to around the 1790s, according to the historic structure report.

Today, more than 80 years after the room was restored, not much has changed here other than moving around the furnishings. Probably the most significant object in the top photo is the original tavern sign, which hung outside of the building in 1775. Although badly faded, it is still legible. It has an image of a punch bowl, and it reads “Entertainment By Wm. Munroe.” The sign is visible in the top photo on the right side of the fireplace, and it is still in the room, but it is on the opposite wall now.

The tavern is still owned by the Lexington Historical Society, which has also preserved Buckman Tavern and the Hancock-Clarke House. All three of the buildings played important roles in the events of April 19, 1775, and all three are open to the public seasonally for tours.

Old Manse North Parlor, Concord, Massachusetts

by

The north parlor at the Old Manse in Concord, probably around 1890-1910. Image courtesy of the Phillips Library at the Peabody Essex Museum, Frank Cousins Glass Plate Negatives Collection.

The scene in 2023:

These two photos show the parlor in the northeast corner of the first floor at the Old Manse. In contrast to the south parlor, which was used primarily by family and close friends, the north parlor was historically a more formal space for entertaining guests, and would have generally had finer decorations and furnishings.

As described in more detail in an earlier post, the Old Manse was built in 1770 as the home of William and Phebe Emerson. William was the pastor of the church in Concord, but he died only a few years later in 1776, while serving as a chaplain in the Continental Army. His successor at the church was Ezra Ripley, who would go on to serve as pastor for 63 years. Ripley also married Emerson’s widow Phebe, and they lived here in this house for the rest of their lives.

The house remained in the Ripley family and their descendants for many years, but the house is best remembered for its association with two prominent writers who lived here early in their careers. From 1834 to 1835, William and Phebe Emerson’s grandson, Ralph Waldo Emerson, lived in the house, and then from 1842 to 1845 the family rented the house to Nathaniel Hawthorne and his newlywed wife Sophia. Both Emerson and Hawthorne used the same upstairs room as their study, and they each wrote some of their earliest published works there.

The top photo shows the north parlor at some point around the turn of the 20th century, when the house was owned by Ezra and Phebe’s granddaughter Sophia Thayer. Her daughter, Sarah Ames, subsequently inherited the house, and she owned it until her death in 1939. Sarah’s husband then donated the house and all of its contents to the Trustees of Reservations, a nonprofit conservation and historic preservation organization in Massachusetts.

Today, the house is still owned by the Trustees and operated as a museum. Here in the North Parlor, the highlights include an 1864 Steinway piano, which is partially visible in the lower right corner of the second photo, and the standing desk beyond it to the right. The desk originally belonged to Ezra Ripley, and it was there that he composed over 3,000 sermons during his more than six decades of ministry at the church.

Old Manse Main Staircase, Concord, Massachusetts (2)

by

The second floor hallway and staircase at the Old Manse in Concord, probably around 1890-1910. Image courtesy of the Phillips Library at the Peabody Essex Museum, Frank Cousins Glass Plate Negatives Collection.

The scene in 2023:

These two photos were taken directly above the spot where the ones in a previous post were taken. The photos in the other post show the scene on the first floor, while these two photos show the stairway from the second floor, looing west. As discussed in more detail in other posts, this house was built in 1770 as the home of William and Phebe Emerson. The Emerson family was here when the Battle of Concord occurred in their backyard, and they witnessed the battle from the room on the right side of this hallway, in the northwest corner of the house. However, the house is perhaps best remembered for having briefly been the home of their grandson Ralph Waldo Emerson, and later as the home of Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Ralph Waldo Emerson lived here for about a year from 1834 to 1835. At the time he was a young widower and former pastor who had abandoned the ministry after the death of his first wife. Although he spent a relatively short time here, this was a formative period in his life as he began to develop his Transcendentalist philosophy. His study was located in the same room where his grandparents had watched the battle, and it was there that he wrote his famous essay “Nature,” which had a strong influence on the subsequent Transcendentalist movement.

Emerson moved out of the house after his marriage to his second wife Lidian in 1835. His step grandfather Ezra Ripley, who had owned the house, died in 1841, and starting in 1842 Ezra’s son Samuel rented the house to another young aspiring writer, Nathaniel Hawthorne. Hawthorne and his wife Sophia spent their wedding night here in the house in 1842, and they lived here for the next three years, with Hawthorne likewise using the same room as Emerson for his study. While living here, he wrote a number of short stories that were later published as a book, titled Mosses from and Old Manse.

The top photo was taken at some point around the turn of the 20th century by photographer Frank Cousins, who used his camera to document the interiors and exteriors of many historic New England homes. The house was still owned by descendants of the Ripley family, and it remained in the family until 1939, when Ezra and Phebe Ripley’s great granddaughter Sarah Ames died.

After Sarah Ames’s death, her husband donated the house and its contents to the Trustees of Reservations, which continues to operate the house as a museum. It remains well-preserved, and it is still furnished with the Ripley family’s belongings, including many of the items shown here in these photos. The furnishings are not all in the same spot as they were when the top photo was taken, but otherwise the only significant difference is the wallpaper. The current wallpaper, with its trompe l’oeil drapery, is based on the wallpaper that was in the hallway earlier in the 19th century, before the wallpaper in the top photo was installed.

Old Manse South Parlor, Concord, Massachusetts

by

The south parlor at the Old Manse in Concord, probably around 1890-1910. Image courtesy of the Phillips Library at the Peabody Essex Museum, Frank Cousins Glass Plate Negatives Collection.

The room in 2023:

These two photos show the south parlor at the Old Manse, a historic home that was built in 1770 as the home of the Reverend William Emerson and his wife Phebe Bliss Emerson. The house served as the parsonage, or “manse” for Emerson until his death in 1776, and it was subsequently the home of his successor, the Reverend Ezra Ripley, who married his widow Phebe in 1780.

However, the house is best remembered for its association with two prominent 19th century writers. Ralph Waldo Emerson, a grandson of William and Phebe, lived here from 1834 to 1835 and wrote one of his earliest works, the essay “Nature,” in his upstairs study here in the house. Then, from 1842 to 1845 the house was rented to Nathaniel Hawthorne, who lived here with his wife Sophia and their infant daughter Una.

The floor plan of the house is typical for late 18th century homes. It features a hallway and staircase in the center of the house, with parlors on either side of it on the ground floor. As was often the case, the north parlor was the more formal one, where its expensive furnishings would be better protected from sunlight, while the south parlor—shown here in these two photos—was a less formal space that would have been used by family members and close friends. This room has a door connecting it to the main hall, and it also has a door to the kitchen, as shown on the left side of these photos.

By the time the top photo was taken, the house was over a hundred years old and had become a famous landmark, thanks in part to the title of one of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s early works, Mosses from an Old Manse, which he wrote while living in the house. It was still owned by descendants of the Ripley family, and many of its furnishings dated back to when Emerson and Hawthorne lived here.

Perhaps the most famous object in the top photo is the stuffed owl on the mantle. According to legend, the owl was brought to the house by Harvard students after they fled Cambridge at the start of the American Revolution. Regardless of how it ended up here, though, Hawthorne discovered it in the attic when he moved in. He brought it downstairs to the parlor and named it “Longfellow” after his Bowdoin College classmate Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Hawthorne’s wife Sophia was somewhat less enamored with the owl, and the family left it here when they moved out in 1845. The owl is still here in this room today, although it is now in the corner behind where these two photos were taken from.

The house was owned by Ripley descendants until 1939, when Ezra and Phebe’s great granddaughter Sarah Ames died. Her husband then donated the house and its contents to the Trustees of Reservations, which has owned and preserved the house ever since. The room was decorated for Christmas when the second photo was taken, but otherwise it does not look much different from when the top photo was taken. The house remains an important literary and historic landmark, and it is open to the public for guided tours.