THIS OLD HOUSE
HOPEFULLY IT WON'T TAKE
ME AS LONG TO CREATE THIS AND FUTURE PAGES AS IT HAS TO COMPLETE WORK
ON OUR HOUSE!
MIGHILL-PERLEY
HOUSE,circa 1730
Famous as the site where a 100-ton ship, THE COUNTRY WONDER was built and then hauled by 100
yoke of oxen.
Use your imagination a bit in looking at the above photograph.
Picture a sailing vessel of slightly more than 100 tons being hauled out
from the front yard of this old house by oxen en route to the waterfront
as noted in the diary of one Deacon Joshua Jewett, on May2,1814.
The old house pictured above has a history of its own, unique in that
it was constructed with rafters hand hewn from logs having a natural crook
that reach from the eaves to the ridgepole. It is said there is only one
other house in Massachusetts containing this unusual feature.
The old house was built in 1730 by Nathaniel Mighill. Nathaniel's granddaughter
married John Perley who was drowned at sea, but not before he and his wife
became the parents of 15 children, all born in the home. One of
these children, Nathaniel Mighill Perley, following in this father's footsteps
became a seafaring man, and during the war of 1812 took an active part in the
privateering that was so prevalent. In one of these affrays, he lost his ship,
and returned home to replace it. It's difficult to imagine why he chose such
a feat but build it he did, despite the remarks of his friends, and neighbors that
it would never reach the sea. However, the ship was proudly borne through the
streets to the narrow but deep waters at the landing, where it was launched, the
whole trip completed in a single day without the loss of man nor beast!
WE BEGAN EXTERIOR REPAIR IN 1991
Patience is a trait we have aquired after living here 14 years. We maintained
sort of an interior room a year plan,(give or take a year)and on the exterior we
reclapboarded a side a year. Then added other exterior projects like a roof, new
storm windows, repaving driveway, new septic system, renovate the barn,
redo the bad roof work, and landscaping to mention a few.
It has been a long process, but we are proud of our efforts.
We came
to own the home in 1986, and began our renovation journey. That year we remodeled
the bathroom, and kitchen, and put on a family room addition. There has been some
major project going on every year since. At this point almost everything has had a
facelift but now since 23 years have passed, some things have been done over again. We did the painting and papering ourselves. We had the floors
refinished, had a second bathroom added (how did we ever live with one bathroom
with this large family), and renovated the third floor which now has 2 bedrooms
and a large room in the center for TV/living/escaping! As I look back, sometimes
it seemed hard always living in a mess, but I'm glad we took our time. We would
have made some foolish changes in our haste. For instance, the windows are old
and hard to operate. Initially, we thought we should we replace them, but realized,
the glass was
old and wavy and if we replaced them, we would loose that old glass and the Indian
shutters. It's nice to have new things, but after a while, you begin
to appreciate the old things and live with them the way they are. Because lack
of money made us bide our time, taking our time paid off in the end.
We are lucky that the house has stayed within this family for a few generations.
It allows us to have lots of old pictures, and first hand knowledge of things concerning
the house. The house stayed in the Mighill-Perley family until the late 1800's.
Because the house's
ownership did not change frequently, there have been few radical changes.
SIDE ONE -- FINISHED SUMMER OF 1991
Our House is considered a Georgian Colonial c.1725-c.1775.The
house has some wonderful period features such as, Indian shutters on the windows, which are wooden panels that slide between the window frame
and the wall. It has 5 working Rumford fireplaces, with very deatailed woodwork along the mantels, wainscoating through out,and wide pine flooring to mention
a few. There is even a dated inscription on the attic wall where some soldiers stayed
before going off to the civil war!
LINKS
Tour Some Period Homes in Salem, Ma.
This Old House
Wood Finishing
Are you interested in old houses, or do you have any house renovation stories to share?
Tell me about it, I'd love to hear!
Look for more later
