Nomination for Parkman Tavern

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

Form No. 10-300 (Rev. 10-74) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE 110675504 FOR NPS USE ONLY NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM RECEIVED APR 1 8 1979 JUN 1 9 1979 DATE ENTERED 3 4 SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN HOW TO COMPLETE NATIONAL REGISTER FORMS TYPE ALL ENTRIES -- COMPLETE APPLICABLE SECTIONS NAME HISTORIC Parkman Tavern AND/OR COMMON Same LOCATION S of Carcand at STREET & NU&FRPowder Mill Road CITY.

TOWN Concord mc - NOT FOR PUBLICATION CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT Fifth STATE Massachusetts VICINITY OF 829E lidoleser 899F CLASSIFICATION CATEGORY DISTRICT XBUILDING(S) STRUCTURE SITE _OBJECT OWNERSHIP _PUBLIC X PRIVATE _BOTH PUBLIC ACQUISITION -IN PROCESS BEING CONSIDERED STATUS *_OCCUPIED _UNOCCUPIED _WORK IN PROGRESS ACCESSIBLE YES: RESTRICTED ENOS: UNRESTRICTED PRESENT USE _AGRICULTURE --MUSEUM _COMMERCIAL _PARK _EDUCATIONAL X PRIVATE RESIDENCE _ENTERTAINMENT -RELIGIOUS _GOVERNMENT -SCIENTIFIC _INDUSTRIAL -TRANSPORTATION - MILITARY _OTHER: OWNER OF PROPERTY NAME Artcon Realty Trust, Alan and Deborah Trustman, beneficial owners STREET & NUMBER Parkman Terrace CITY, TOWN STATE Massachusetts (01742) Concord LVICINITYOF LOCATION OF LEGAL DESCRIPTION COURTHOUSE, REGISTRY OF DEEDS,ETC. Middlesex County Registry of Deeds STREET & NUMBER 40 Thorndike Street CITY.

TOWN STATE Massachusetts Cambridge REPRESENTATION IN EXISTING SURVEYS TITLE Inventory of the Historic Assets of the Commonwealth #3 DATE _FEDERAL XSTATE COUNTY _LOCAL DEPOSITORY FOR SURVEY RECORDS Massachusetts Historical Commission CITY. TOWN Boston STATE Massachusetts 7 DESCRIPTION CONDITION XEXCELLENT GOOD FAIR _DETERIORATED _RUINS _UNEXPOSED CHECK ONE -UNALTERED XALTERED CHECK ONE XORIGINAL SITE MOVED DATE_ DESCRIBE THE PRESENT AND ORIGINAL (IF KNOWN) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

Description of the property

The Parkman Tavern is located at the corner of Sudbury and Powder Mill Roads in the Town of Concord adjacent to a one and a half acre pond. It is a two and a half story five bay center entrance wood framed structure sheathed with clapboards. A central chimney with a corbelled cap rises through a ridge roof. The foundation is fieldstone. A modern one story shed-roof ell which replaced an earlier barn extends from its northeast corner. It is believed that the house was constructed in the seventeenth century and remodeled in 1770 and 1820. The early date is supported by several features: the position of the chimney in front of the ridge; the fenestration of the side ele- vations with paired windows placed toward the front and presumably older portion of the structure; and interior details such as feather edged sheathing and cham- fered beams.

The present appearance of the facade is the result of a ninteenth century remodeling and reflects the popularity of the Greek Revival style. The entrance is framed by full length side lights and a shallow pediment and is flanked on either side by two windows. The three windows of the second story repeat the side light pattern of the front door. 6/9 double hung sash appears throughout the building. The window surrounds and cornerboards are formed of simple flush boarding. The molded cornice has short returns and is raked in the gable ends. Inside the stairway leading to the cellar are traces of much earlier stairs, going in the opposite direction, possibly at one time to a buttery. The cellar door in the dining room dates from the 17th century. Upstairs there are two large chambers. The east bedroom contains 17th century vertical feather-edged sheathing.

The 17th century posts and beams have been boxed with beaded-edged boards, probably in 1770. The front window was altered from the more traditional two windows about 1820 by an architect working in Lexington. He also changed the windows in the upstairs front hall and the west bedroom. In the front hall one can see the original 17th century beams, containing traces of egg yolk paint. The attic stairs have been boarded up, but one can see in the plaster under the wallpaper where they originally went. The western bedroom contains plaster dating from the 17th century/ / Fragments of diamond paned glass from the original casement windows have been found inside the walls as well as pieces of the wooden casement window frames. The size and shape of these windows is clearly visible in the plaster, which has been protected under a layer of canvas.

Traces of the same 17th century feather-edged sheathing that exists in the east bedroom were found in the wall of the west bedroom. It was torn down in 1820 when the attic stairs were removed. The present owners have restored that sheathing. In addition, brick insulation dating from the 17th century was found inside the walls of both bredooms. The ceilings in these bed- rooms are very high, nine feet.

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

SIGNIFICANCE PERIOD -PREHISTORIC _1400-1499 -1500-1599 X1600-1699 -1700-1799 1800-1899 - 1900- ARCHEOLOGY-PREHISTORIC -ARCHEOLOGY-HISTORIC AGRICULTURE XARCHITECTURE ART -COMMERCE _COMMUNICATIONS AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE -- CHECK AND JUSTIFY BELOW -COMMUNITY PLANNING -LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE -CONSERVATION _LAW -ECONOMICS -LITERATURE _EDUCATION -MILITARY _ENGINEERING _MUSIC XEXPLORATION/SETTLEMENT _PHILOSOPHY _INDUSTRY POLITICS/GOVERNMENT -INVENTION -RELIGION _SCIENCE -SCULPTURE SOCIAL/HUMANITARIAN _THEATER -TRANSPORTATION -OTHER (SPECIFY) SPECIFIC DATES BUILDER

Statement of significance

/ARCHITECT George wheeler 1659 STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE The Parkman Tavern possesses integrity of design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association. It is associated with events which have contributed to the broad patterns of our history, with persons important in Concord's past and it embodies many of the distinctive characteristics of first period construction ex- panded by eighteenth and ninteenth century owners. It is one of the oldest houses in Concord and stands on its original site. During most of its history, it was owned and occupied by the Wheeler family, one of the earliest, largest and oldest Concord families It is believed that the core of the house was built in 1659 by George Wheeler for his son William at the time of his marriage.

George had arrived in Concord in the 1640's, and purchasing much of the southwestern section of town known as Nine Acre Corner (where the Parkman Tavern is located) from Peter Bulkely, quickly became one of the larger landowners. He was elected selectman in 1660. The house remained in Wheeler ownership until 1770 when Amos Wheeler sold it to William Parkman, a wealthy Boston merchant. Parkman was one of the messengers sent to warn the inhabitants of neighboring towns that the British were coming on April 19, 1775. He served as deputy sherrif of the county for most of the twenty-five years he lived at Nine Acre Corner. He became deacon of the First Church in 1788, and also served as the town's first postmaster. The house takes its name from this period when it was operated as a tavern.

Nineteenth century accounts described the tavern as "a great place of resort for teamsters, who in those days did all the business of transportation for the county. His (Parkman's) granddaughter remembered that on one occasion her grandfather put up for the night over forty teams. She also used to recall vividly the fact that heavy Canadian baggage wagons, drawn by ten or a dozen as heavy horses, with peculiarly cumbersom harness used to appear frequently at the tavern." The success of the tavern may be attributed in part to its location. In the eighteenth century the "South Road" was a major route connecting Lincoln on the east with Marlboro on the west. At that time it incorporated Powder Mill Road and ran right by the tavern.: In the nineteenth century this route was supplanted by the Fitchburg Turnpike (now Route 117) which ran one mile south of the tavern.

In 1795 Parkman moved to Concord Village to become a shopkeeper. He sold the house and farm to Phineas Wheeler, a nephew of Amos. One of Phineas' sons was Captain Artemas Wheeler, a veteran of the War of 1812. He had enlisted in the Concord Light Infantry in 1806 and became captain of the company in 1816. He was a gunsmith by trade and is well-known for his invention of the gun with a revolving cylinder for which he was granted a patent in 1818. The house remained in the Wheeler family throughout the nineteenth century.

The rest of the file

Bibliography, boundary description, and the people who prepared and reviewed the nomination.

MAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES Fenn, Mary. Old Houses of Concord..Daughters of the American Revolution, 1974. Wheelex, Ruth. Concord- Climate for Freedom. Concord Antiquarian Society, 1970. Wheeler, Ruth. The Wheeler Houses. Concord Library, 1971. Toleman, George. The Wheeler Families of Old Concord, Mass. Concord Antiquarian Society. 1908. 10 GEOGRAPHICAL DATA ACREAGE OF NOMINATED PROPERTY UTM REFERENCES acres A12,91 ZONE 1310,414,9,5 EASTING 14,619,912,9,51 NORTHING LULLiliLu NORTHING elllydbillul VERBAL BOUNDARY,DESCRIPTION Please attached assesor's map on which the boundaries are deliniated in red.

LIST ALL STATES AND COUNTIES FOR PROPERTIES OVERLAPPING STATE OR COUNTY BOUNDARIES STATE CODE COUNTY CODE STATE CODE COUNTY CODE 11 FORM PREPARED BY Pliny Jewell, Alan Trustman NAME / TITLE Concord Historical Commission Candace Jenkins, National Register Coordinator ORGANIZATION DATE Massachusetts Historical Commission March 1979 STREET & NUMBER TELEPHONE 294 Washington Street (617) 727-8470 CITY OR TOWN STATE Boston Massachusetts 12 STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER CERTIFICATION THE EVALUATED SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS PROPERTY WITHIN THE STATE IS NATIONAL - STATE - LOCAL As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-665), 1 hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated according to the criteria and procedures set forth by the National Park Service.

STATE HISTORIC PRESEAVATON OFFICER SIGNATUR/Stun LWsbuski TITLE 4/3/19 DATE Executive Director, Mass. Historical Commission FOR NPS USE ONLY I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS PROPERTY IS INCLUDED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER mallttun IECTAR-GFFICE GE ARGHEOL 6 GY AND HISTOR SEAVA NAUKAPHRDE TIS 6/18/79 KEEPER OF THENATIONAL REGISTER GPO 892-453 Property Parkman Javem State mars. middl Work Working Number 4.18.79.844 TECHNICAL Photos 4 Maps CONTROL OK 4.18.29 HISTORIAN ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIAN ARCHEOLOGIST OTHER HAER Inventory Review REVIEW UNITCHIEF HHE STRUMLMK IS ONK OF THEEARLIEST IN CONCORD ANDIS ASSOCINRD WI1H DNE OF THE COMLUNITIES EANLEST AND LARGEST CONCORD FAWILIES. PHYSEAMT HHE HOWSE IS PRWLARILY REKRESENTATIUE DE THE ITT CENPURY WITH CHANCES MOPE TO LT IN 1710 AND 182D.

BRANCH CHIEF ACCENT 6/18/19 KEEPER National Register Write-up Federal Register Entry 7-3-19 Send-back Re-submit Entered JUN |9 1979 United States Department of the Interior -Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service JUN | 9 1979 Concord APR 1 8 1979 Parkman Tavern Deborah Trustman 1977 Parkman Tavern Photo #1 Facade (south) and east elevation ,middlesenty PAD T4E SOUTH AND EAST FACAD Concord JUN | 9 1979 APR 1 8 1979 Parkman Tavern Deborah Trustman Parkman 1977 Tavern iast e levation middlesenf county LAST FACARE OF THE BUILD JUN | 9 1979 APR 1 8 1979 Concord Parkman Tavern Deborah Trustman 1977 Parkman Tavern Photo#3 West elevation mitllennt oun EST FACADE DF THE CLILDI JUN | 9 1979 Concord Parkman Tavern Deborah Trustman Parkman Tavern Photo #4 Facade 1977 soutn) andu aidllesey APR 1 8 1979 WARD THE EAST AND SOUTH ENTRIES IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER STATE MASSACHUSETTS Date Entered JUN | 9 1979 Name Wason-Springfield Steam Power Blocks Winchester Savings Bank Pazkean Zavern tocation Springfield Hampden County Winchester Middlesex County Concord Lädalesex County LaVCL1l Noxfolk County Al:o Notilied Honorable Paul G.

Tsengas Honorable Rdward M. Ka Honereble Edward P. Konor ble Edward J. Marl 10301 1. S1 le Hargaret 1 State Historfe Preservatton Officer Mrg. Patrieta I. Heslouski Rxocutive Director Massachusetts Historical Connieston 294 Wachington Strect Hoston, 1 sactuscrts 02103 R Byers/bir 6/21/19 For fuxther infomalion, pleose call the Nattonal Regiuter at (202)343-S401.