10 Pine Street NANTUCKET
A House History
A Brief History 10 Pine Street Charles Bunker, blacksmith, circa 1765 Enlarged by John Folger, circa 1820
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ocal folklore handed down for more than a hundred years suggests that a portion of the house at 10 Pine Street was reclaimed from Parliament House—the Nathaniel and Mary Starbuck homestead at Sherburne. This large structure, constructed in the last quarter of the seventeenth century, is said to have been dismantled and reconstructed at 10 Pine about 1820. There is no reason to think this story is untrue, since dismantling and reusing timbers and other building materials has over the centuries been an essential part of the island’s building tradition. In fact, fifteen houses in town have been identified as possibly containing sections of early houses from the Sherburne settlement. Usually there is no documentary evidence to substantiate house moves or material reuse, but architectural historians have studied 10 Pine Street and concluded that framing elements in its northwest section are consistent with late- seventeenth-century building practices.
Although a section may contain seventeenth-century elements, the first house on the site is the east end of the present house built during the ownership of Charles Bunker, blacksmith. Bunker most likely built the house soon after his purchase of twenty-two rods of land in 1765. He later purchased an additional parcel to the south totaling 1½ rods—possibly for the construction of an addition or outbuilding. Bunker’s house was built on the western end of the 23rd Fish Lot, a subdivision of land so named for its use by fishermen who are said to have dried codfish on racks in this area. Laid out in 1717, the Fish Lots contained twenty-seven sections or shares, one for each of the twenty original landholders’ families and one-half for each of the fourteen half-share tradesmen’s families. The area began to be developed in the 1720s, but most structures in the area date to the mid- to late-eighteenth century when the whaling industry began to flourish and the need for new housing increased dramatically. Research indicates that many of the early owners of houses in this area of the Fish Lots were mariners, tradesmen, and craftsmen, and they built houses along with barns and other outbuildings associated with their trades. That is the case for Charles Bunker, who as a blacksmith lived and worked on site. Bunker retained the property until 1813, when it was seized by the sheriff for debts. Bunker’s debts may be tied to a blockade imposed by Britain during the War of 1812, which made iron and other materials on island impossible to acquire. At the time of the property’s seizure it included a house, a shop, a barn, a bakehouse, a pump, a pump house, and other outbuildings—all appraised at a value of $900.
James Austin
Mary Folger Austin
We do not know the exact date that Parliament House was added to Bunker’s house, but construction most likely began soon after house carpenter John Folger purchased the south end of the property in 1819. The deed to Folger’s property notes that the house was divided into two sections and called for the sellers to move the blacksmith shop off Folger’s land onto the north end. The Nantucket Marine Insurance Company and other creditors sold the remainder of the property the following year to Frederick Jones, mariner, for $800. Jones appears to have run into financial difficulties, selling his portion to Folger four years later for $480. Folger and his family held the property for over a hundred years. John Folger, (1784–1864) the son of Charles Folger and Lydia Coleman, married Lydia Swain (1783–1846), daughter of Albertus Swain and Lydia Barnard in about 1811. They had two daughters: Mary, born July 7, 1812; and Lydia, born September 29, 1818. John married a second time after 1846, to Phebe Coffin (1789–1868). Upon his death on February 7, 1864, the house was left to his daughter, Mary F. Austin, and his grandchildren, whose mother, Lydia F. Swain, had died seven years earlier. Mary and her husband, James Austin, retained the house and eventually purchased their nephews’ shares. Census records show their residence here as early as 1850, and it is possible that they lived here as early as their marriage in 1833. Although the 1840 census does not specify location, James Austin’s name adjoins that of his father-in-law, John Folger, suggesting he occupied a portion of the house at that time. The later census records also note James’s occupation as tinsman, or tinplate maker. With James Austin’s death in 1892, the house passed to his sons Joseph and Charles, who appear to have lived elsewhere. By 1923, the property had been sold outside the extended Folger-Austin family. Between 1924 and 1945, Julia B. Farrington and Mary E. Crosby owned the house and operated it in season as a boarding house called “Old Parliament House.” Newspaper advertisements from the period show that they offered “Spacious rooms. Excellent table.” and “Meals served singly or by the week.”
OWNERS OF 10 PINE STREET: Silvanus Hussey, et al to Charles Bunker West end of the 23rd Fish Lot 23, 22 ½ rods of vacant land
1765
William Hussey et al to Charles Bunker “small lot,” 1 ½ rods adjoins Bunker’s property Sheriff’s Deed taking property of Charles Bunker for creditors: Nantucket Marine Insurance Co., John Starbuck, and Judith Macy et al
1796
Nantucket Marine Insurance Co., et al to John Folger, house carpenter 3/8 interest, excludes blacksmith shop on lot Nantucket Marine Insurance Co., et al to Frederick Jones, mariner Remaining interest Frederick Jones, mariner to John Folger, house carpenter
1819
Will of John Folger ½ share to daughter Mary F. Austin ½ share to grandchildren Laban Swain, Thurstan Swain, Ariston Swain, Laban W. Swain to James Austin 1/6 share Joseph B. Swain and Phebe M. Swain to James Austin Together with 8 Pine Street
1864
1813
1820 1824
1869 1876
Will of James Austin 1896 to sons Joseph and Charles G. S. Austin Charles’ share conveyed to wife Mary Austin Caroline Austin, widow of Joseph Austin to Minnie Sickels, wife of John W. Sickels 1923 ½ interest Charles W. Austin, conservator of Mary Austin (wife of Charles G. S. Austin) 1923 to Minnie Sickels, wife of John W. Sickels ½ interest Minnie Sickels to Mary E. Crosby and Julia B. Farrington 1924 Julia B. Farrington to Alice W. Lyman
1945
Alice W. Lyman to Albert E. and Rebecca E. Whitehall
1954
Rebecca E. Whitehall to William and Mildred Gieg
1980
Helen M Weitlich, Trustee for William F., and Mildred W. Gieg To Douglass Bermingham Douglass Bermingham to Back on ACK LLC
1997
Prepared by Michael May Nantucket Preservation Trust
April, 2012 Historic images courtesy of the Nantucket Historical Association
2012
Nantucket Preservation Trust Advocates, Educates, and Celebrates the Preservation of Nantucket’s Historic Architecture
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his brief history is an important contribution to the island’s architectural record. Documentation is one of the ways the Nantucket Preservation Trust celebrates the more than 2,400 historic homes, farms, and workplaces that contributed to the island’s designation as a National Historic Landmark in 1966. By providing owners of historic houses, island residents, schoolchildren, and visitors a broad spectrum of programs and projects, we encourage the preservation of irreplaceable structures, architectural features, and cultural landscapes. Lectures, walking tours, house markers, special events, and publications—including the house histories and neighborhood histories—define our unique work on Nantucket. We hope you enjoy the history of this house, its past owners, and its place in Nantucket’s remarkable architectural heritage.
Nantucket Preservation Trust Post Office Box 158 • Nantucket, MA 02554 www.nantucketpreservation.org Copyright © 2012 Nantucket Preservation Trust
nantucket preservation trust Post Office Box 158 • Nantucket, Massachusetts www.nantucketpreservation.org