Massachusetts Oldest House Is Over 150 Years Older Than America

The one thing I love about Massachusetts is all the old-fashioned style houses we have.

Some might say they're creepy but someone like me finds them rather historic. Growing up in a house built in 1921 myself. My grandmother's house was built in 1876. As a matter of fact, the apartment I'm currently living at which used to be an old church was built 1916.

fairbankshouse.org

So what is the oldest house in Massachusetts?

You're looking at the Fairbanks House located in Dedham, Massachusetts just on the outskirts of Boston. With construction that started around 1637, and fully completed by 1641. Not only deemed the oldest house in Massachusetts, it is the oldest wooden structure still standing in the United States!

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fairbankshouse.org

Here's a Little brief history about the Fairbanks House. It was named after Johnathan and Grace Fairbanks whom came from England to the Massachusetts Colony in 1633 along with six of their children.

Johnathan worked as a skilled tradesman to make a living for his family and spent most of his time making "spinning wheels," a complex machine that everyone required but could assemble for themselves at the time. His sons spent summers farming where they became successful and wealthy enough to hire servants in addition to expanding the property.

fairbankshouse.org

One of the main reasons the house still stands today is because Johnathan who did not build the house himself, instead a hired master carpenter and mason. Moving to eight generations of Fairbanks living in the home until opening as a museum in 1904.

The house never had anything we have today such as heat, running water, or electricity. Other than a few additions added over the years, majority of this original wooden structure remains nearly the same when it was first built.

fairbankshouse.org

Being the oldest surviving timber frame house in North America, the Fairbanks House is open to the public for tours Friday, Saturday and Sunday from May through October. Located at 511 East Street, Dedham, MA.

For more information or to schedule a museum tour, call 781-326-1170 or visit them online at fairbankshouse.org.

Where is the Oldest Chinese Restaurant in Upstate New York? Take a Look!!

When it comes to lists of "the oldest in Upstate New York," there is not a shortage of places to list. We will try to give you a sense of that list with these dozen points of interest.

In this gallery you will find these "oldest in Upstate New York" places: the oldest Chinese restaurant, church, fireboat, miniature golf, state park, municipal cemetery, drive-in movie, ferry service, five and dime store, bowling alley, and the oldest family farm in Upstate New York. Whew!

Of course we could go on and on with this list. It is fun, after all. So watch for more "oldest" lists in the future!

Gallery Credit: Chuck D'Imperio

6 New York State Pizzerias Among Oldest In America

6 Of The Oldest Restaurants In The Northeast Worth The Drive

We will take a look at 6 of the oldest restaurants that are within driving distance...

The Griswold Inn is located in Essex and in New York it's The 76' House in Tappan. I was curious and looked at what is the oldest in nearby New Jersey, Pennslyvania, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island.

In New Jersey we will look at The Cranbury Inn located in the township of Middlesex, in Pennsylvania, it will be McGillin's Olde Ale House located in Philadelphia.

In Rhode Island, we will look at the White Horse Tavern in Newport, and in Massachusetts its Union Oyster House in Boston.

Gallery Credit: Google Streetview

LOOK: Milestones in women's history from the year you were born

Women have left marks on everything from entertainment and music to space exploration, athletics, and technology. Each passing year and new milestone makes it clear both how recent this history-making is in relation to the rest of the country, as well as how far we still need to go. The resulting timeline shows that women are constantly making history worthy of best-selling biographies and classroom textbooks; someone just needs to write about them.

Scroll through to find out when women in the U.S. and around the world won rights, the names of women who shattered the glass ceiling, and which country's women banded together to end a civil war.

Gallery Credit: Isabel Sepulveda

Filed Under: Dedham, Massachusetts, Oldest House, United States

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