Rea-Proctor Homestead

The Rea-Proctor Homestead is situated on the north side of Conant Street in Danvers (formally North Beverly and before that, Salem Village). The Rea-Proctor House is a frame building of 2½ stories, with gable roof, 3 chimmeys, clapboard siding, and 18 rooms. The property contains almost 1½ acres of meadowland and is clearly visible from the Route 128 expressway. The phased development of this farmhouse is reflected in its variegated roofline, wings and asymmetrical facade. doorway The principal facade has five bays; its roughly centered features half-height sidelights and a channeledarchitrave with center and corner blocks. The original eastern portion of the main building was constructed (according to tradition) in 1692 as a half-house.

By 1731, the Rea family had enlarged the house by adding two bays on the west, although the roofline here is slightly lower. Extensive interior improvements were made throughout the building by Captain Isaac Rea during his ownership (1798-1803)- The panelling, wainscoting, Indian shutters, and much of the hardware probably date to this period, and remain in prime condition. It may have been during this period that the window sash were replaced with 8/12 lights and the fireplaces were made smaller. After 1812 a wing containing two rooms was built on the west. This 2½ story addition has a chimney and plain doorway on the east end of its facade. In the mid-nineteenth century a small 1½ story ell with separate chimney was added in the back of the house.

This back wing and the original 1692 portion of the house have been used during the last hundred years mainly as a summer residence and are, from a preservationists viewpoint, in pristine condition. There are no heating ducts and only minimal electric and plumbing work, minimizing modern intrusions into this historic house.

/Architect Statement of Significance (in one paragraph) landscape architecture law literature _ military - music - philosophy X politics/government - religion science sculpture social/ humanitarian theater transportation other (specify) Unknown The Rea-Proctor Homestead is associated with two events of national significance: the Salem Village witchcraft delusion of 1692, and the Essex Junto plot, c. 1804, in which Timothy Pickering and other Federalists hoped to organize New England and New York to secede from the Union. In addition, this Farmsite is significant as a site of continuous agricultural activity. The early 19th agricultural experiments which Timothy Pickering conducted here are precisely documented and invaluable to the study of early American agriculture.

The House is also important for its evidence of architectural evolution. The property thus meets criteria A, B, and C of the NRHP. Built in 1692 by Joshua Rea, Sr. and his son, John Rea, this house was to remain in the Rea family until 1803. Joshua Rea, Sr. was a leader among Salem Villagers - active in municipal and church affairs. He and others in his family were defenders of neighbors accused as witches (John Proctor and Rebecca Nurse) at a time when such defense was a personal risk. Indeed, Joshua Rea, Sr's real estate transactions indicate he may have divested himself of this' house and farmland for fear of re- prisals for his defense. An independent-thinking man, Joshua Rea, Sr. was the only one among the twenty-five original members of the Salem Village church who opposed Rev.

Parris (the central figure among accusers of "witches") in 1695. With Salem's development as a mercantile center and major port, successive generations of the Rea family developed skills, in addition to farming, which reflected and supported Salem's growth. Thus John Rea (owner from 1692-1731) was a husbandman (farmer); Gideon Rea, Sr.