Built 1709 (1709) NRHP Reference # 90000214 Area 6,880 m² Added to NRHP 9 March 1990 | Built by Jacob Davis Opened 1709 Architectural style American Colonial | |
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Location 302 Essex Ave., Gloucester, Massachusetts MPS First Period Buildings of Eastern Massachusetts TR Similar Cape Ann, Our Lady of Good Voyage C, Beauport, Wingaersheek Beach, Wellfleet Drive‑In Theater | ||
The Davis-Freeman House is a historic house at 302 Essex Avenue in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Built in the early 18th century, it is a rare local example of a plank-framed house. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. It presently serves as part of a homeless shelter.
Description and history
The Davis-Freeman House stands on slightly more than 1.5 acres (0.61 ha) on the south side of Essex Avenue (Massachusetts Route 133) in a rural-suburban area of western Gloucester. It is set just north of the Little River, a tidal tributary of the Annisquam River. It house is a 2-1/2 story plank construction, with a gabled roof and clapboarded exterior. Its second story projects beyond the first in front, where the exposed timbers are seen to be hand-hewn, and moulded post heads are visible. The windows and central chimney are the product of a c. 1930s restoration. It has had a few 20th century additions.
In 1709 Jacob Davis acquired a grant of land at the head of the Little River, and by 1712 he had built this house and a mill on it. For most of the 18th century the house was used as a hostel and tavern. In 1860 it was purchased by Robin Freeman, an escaped slave, and it remained in the Freeman family until 1929. In that year its original chimney was destroyed in a chimney fire. It was then purchased by Peter Keffer, who undertook the restoration of the property. It now serves as part of a homeless shelter.