Cambridge Grant Historic District
Encyclopedia
Cambridge Grant Historic District (or "Russell Hill") is a 322 acres (1.3 km²) historic district
located on 205-287 Russell Hill Road and 15 Wilker Road in Ashburnham, Massachusetts
, at an elevation of 1240–1300 feet above sea level. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 2001.
in 1734 as compensation for that town's responsibility in maintaining the first bridge across the Charles River
connecting Boston
to towns to the north, built in 1662. Known as the Cambridge Bridge Farm, it remained unsettled until 1770, when John Adams of Menotomy (West Cambridge Parish) became the first settler with his new bride, Joanna Munroe, daughter of the Munroe family of Lexington, Massachusetts
, owners of the Munroe Tavern. He was soon followed by other family members, including his father, Thomas Adams, Sr., his brother, Thomas Adams, Jr., his sister, Lucretia Adams Wetherbee, and his nephew, Thomas Russell, a relative of Jason Russell of the Jason Russell House
. A community of interrelated settlers from the Adams and Russell families of Menotomy evolved. The principal occupation of many of the early settlers was the tanning of goat or sheep skins into Morocco Leather.
and Maine
land grants in the eighteenth century, but most are no longer recognizable due to building loss and subsequent development. Cambridge Grant is nearly unique in retaining a significant number of early homes and outbuildings in their original settings, with almost no encroachment from later building episodes. Today the Cambridge Grant Historic District contains seven Federal Architecture
period homes dating from 1787/88 to 1834, together with barns and outbuildings, plus the Russell-Burbank family cemetery (1848). In addition, the Walter Russell House contains two of the earliest known murals by the itinerant "Yankee Wall Painter," Rufus Porter
.
. and of Isaac Munroe, who was slain by the British that day. Ebenezer Munroe later removed to Ashburnham. Early settler Thomas Russell (a nephew of John Adams) was a second cousin of Jason Russell, owner of the Jason Russell House
, who was killed in his kitchen in Menotomy by enraged British regulars on their return to Boston following their engagement at Concord.
Shortly after the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the first settlers were joined by Ethan Wetherbee and his wife, Lucretia Adams, a sister of John Adams the Centenarian. Wetherbee had been keeper of the Black Horse Tavern in Menotomy, where the Massachusetts Committee of Safety
and Committee of Supplies had met; by locking the tavern door he had saved Charles Lee
, Azor Orne and Elbridge Gerry
from capture by British troops passing through on their way to Concord on the night of April 18–19, 1775.
in the role of Grandpa in George S. Kaufman's You Can't Take It With You
on Broadway, and played it for over 500 consecutive performances in New York and Chicago. When Kaufman won the Pulitzer Prize for the play in 1937, Bowker was the presenter. He went on to play character roles in 25 motion pictures between 1939 and 1942, including The Major and the Minor
and Abe Lincoln in Illinois
. Aldrich Bowker's brother, Frank Bowker, also a district resident, was the author of Ashby Four Corners, a play about life in a small New England town whose setting is Russell Hill. Clara Burbank (1862–1927), a successful still life artist, was a neighbor in the district, as was Amy L. Burbank (1875–1948), a popular New England landscape painter.
(1788–1851), a grandson of John Adams the Centenarian, NH State Representative, NH State Senator, Comptroller of the United States Treasury in the Andrew Jackson administration, U.S. Senator from NH, and Governor of New Hampshire. Ivers Adams (1808–1890), Mass. State Representative, 1851. Samuel G. Adams (1825–1886), Superintendent of Police for the City of Boston. Ivers Whitney Adams
(born 1838), founder of the Boston Red Stockings
, first professional baseball team in Boston. Melvin Ohio Adams (1847–1920), lawyer for Lizzie Borden. Both Melvin Ohio and Ivers Whitney were grandsons of John Adams the Centenarian (1744–1848). Luther B. Adams (born 1829) and Andrew Jackson Adams (1828–1911), officers of the Boston Chair Manufacturing Company of Ashburnham, an aggressive innovator in mass production techniques and one of the three largest chair manufacturers in the United States in the third quarter of the nineteenth century.
Historic district
A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries, historic districts receive legal protection from development....
located on 205-287 Russell Hill Road and 15 Wilker Road in Ashburnham, Massachusetts
Ashburnham, Massachusetts
As of the census of 2000, there were 5,546 people, 1,929 households, and 1,541 families residing in the town. The population density was 143.4 people per square mile . There were 2,204 housing units at an average density of 57.0 per square mile...
, at an elevation of 1240–1300 feet above sea level. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 2001.
Early History
The 1000 acres (4 km²) district was granted to the town of CambridgeCambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
in 1734 as compensation for that town's responsibility in maintaining the first bridge across the Charles River
Charles River
The Charles River is an long river that flows in an overall northeasterly direction in eastern Massachusetts, USA. From its source in Hopkinton, the river travels through 22 cities and towns until reaching the Atlantic Ocean at Boston...
connecting Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
to towns to the north, built in 1662. Known as the Cambridge Bridge Farm, it remained unsettled until 1770, when John Adams of Menotomy (West Cambridge Parish) became the first settler with his new bride, Joanna Munroe, daughter of the Munroe family of Lexington, Massachusetts
Lexington, Massachusetts
Lexington is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 31,399 at the 2010 census. This town is famous for being the site of the first shot of the American Revolution, in the Battle of Lexington on April 19, 1775.- History :...
, owners of the Munroe Tavern. He was soon followed by other family members, including his father, Thomas Adams, Sr., his brother, Thomas Adams, Jr., his sister, Lucretia Adams Wetherbee, and his nephew, Thomas Russell, a relative of Jason Russell of the Jason Russell House
Jason Russell House
The Jason Russell House is a historic house in Arlington, Massachusetts, the site of the bloodiest fighting on the first day of the Revolutionary War, April 19, 1775...
. A community of interrelated settlers from the Adams and Russell families of Menotomy evolved. The principal occupation of many of the early settlers was the tanning of goat or sheep skins into Morocco Leather.
Significance
Such one-or-two family neighborhoods constituted a familiar settlement pattern in MassachusettsMassachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
and Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
land grants in the eighteenth century, but most are no longer recognizable due to building loss and subsequent development. Cambridge Grant is nearly unique in retaining a significant number of early homes and outbuildings in their original settings, with almost no encroachment from later building episodes. Today the Cambridge Grant Historic District contains seven Federal Architecture
Federal architecture
Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the United States between c. 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815. This style shares its name with its era, the Federal Period. The name Federal style is also used in association with furniture design...
period homes dating from 1787/88 to 1834, together with barns and outbuildings, plus the Russell-Burbank family cemetery (1848). In addition, the Walter Russell House contains two of the earliest known murals by the itinerant "Yankee Wall Painter," Rufus Porter
Rufus Porter
For the American football player see Rufus Porter .For the American poet see Rufus L. Porter.Rufus M. Porter was an American painter, inventor, and founder of Scientific American magazine....
.
Revolutionary Period
The Adams and Russell families were closely connected to Revolutionary figures in Menotomy and Lexington. Joanna Munroe, wife of first settler John Adams (later known as the Centenarian), was the sister of Ebenezer Munroe, a Minuteman who fired the first shot on the British on Lexington green, April 19, 1775 in the Battles of Lexington and ConcordBattles of Lexington and Concord
The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. They were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord, Lincoln, Menotomy , and Cambridge, near Boston...
. and of Isaac Munroe, who was slain by the British that day. Ebenezer Munroe later removed to Ashburnham. Early settler Thomas Russell (a nephew of John Adams) was a second cousin of Jason Russell, owner of the Jason Russell House
Jason Russell House
The Jason Russell House is a historic house in Arlington, Massachusetts, the site of the bloodiest fighting on the first day of the Revolutionary War, April 19, 1775...
, who was killed in his kitchen in Menotomy by enraged British regulars on their return to Boston following their engagement at Concord.
Shortly after the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the first settlers were joined by Ethan Wetherbee and his wife, Lucretia Adams, a sister of John Adams the Centenarian. Wetherbee had been keeper of the Black Horse Tavern in Menotomy, where the Massachusetts Committee of Safety
Committee of Safety
Committee of Safety may refer to:*English Committee of Safety, the parliamentary body in England that oversaw the English Civil War*Committee of Safety , established throughout the Thirteen Colonies at the start of the American Revolution...
and Committee of Supplies had met; by locking the tavern door he had saved Charles Lee
Charles Lee
Charles Lee may refer to:*Charles Lee , former NFL player*Charles Lee *Charles Lee , British author*Charles Lee *Charles Lee...
, Azor Orne and Elbridge Gerry
Elbridge Gerry
Elbridge Thomas Gerry was an American statesman and diplomat. As a Democratic-Republican he was selected as the fifth Vice President of the United States , serving under James Madison, until his death a year and a half into his term...
from capture by British troops passing through on their way to Concord on the night of April 18–19, 1775.
Twentieth Century
In the early twentieth century, the district became an active summer arts community. Home to writers and artists, it was noted for popular outdoor theatrical performances sponsored by the successful stage actor, Aldrich Bowker (1875–1947), one of its summer residents. Bowker succeeded Henry TraversHenry Travers
Henry Travers was an English actor. His most memorable role was that of the angel, Clarence, in the 1946 motion picture It's A Wonderful Life.-Early life:...
in the role of Grandpa in George S. Kaufman's You Can't Take It With You
You Can't Take It with You
You Can't Take It with You is a comedic play in three acts by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. The original production of the play opened at the Booth Theater on December 14, 1936, and played for 837 performances...
on Broadway, and played it for over 500 consecutive performances in New York and Chicago. When Kaufman won the Pulitzer Prize for the play in 1937, Bowker was the presenter. He went on to play character roles in 25 motion pictures between 1939 and 1942, including The Major and the Minor
The Major and the Minor
The Major and the Minor is a 1942 American comedy film starring Ginger Rogers and Ray Milland. It was the first American film directed by Billy Wilder, and launched his "incomparable" directing career...
and Abe Lincoln in Illinois
Abe Lincoln in Illinois (film)
Abe Lincoln in Illinois is a 1940 biographical film which tells the story of the life of Abraham Lincoln from his departure from Kentucky until his election as President of the United States....
. Aldrich Bowker's brother, Frank Bowker, also a district resident, was the author of Ashby Four Corners, a play about life in a small New England town whose setting is Russell Hill. Clara Burbank (1862–1927), a successful still life artist, was a neighbor in the district, as was Amy L. Burbank (1875–1948), a popular New England landscape painter.
Other Notable Ashburnham Residents Born in Cambridge Grant
Isaac HillIsaac Hill
Isaac Hill was an American publisher, editor, and politician from Concord, New Hampshire. Born in 1789 in West Cambridge, Massachusetts, he represented New Hampshire in the United States Senate and later served as governor...
(1788–1851), a grandson of John Adams the Centenarian, NH State Representative, NH State Senator, Comptroller of the United States Treasury in the Andrew Jackson administration, U.S. Senator from NH, and Governor of New Hampshire. Ivers Adams (1808–1890), Mass. State Representative, 1851. Samuel G. Adams (1825–1886), Superintendent of Police for the City of Boston. Ivers Whitney Adams
Ivers Whitney Adams
Ivers Whitney Adams was an American baseball executive and businessperson, and founder of the first professional baseball team in Boston, the Boston Red Stockings.- Baseball :...
(born 1838), founder of the Boston Red Stockings
Boston Red Stockings
The color red has been used in the names and commonly in the uniforms of several professional baseball teams in Boston, Massachusetts.* Boston's first professional baseball club was established 1871 by Boston businessman Ivers Whitney Adams, and was nicknamed the Boston Red Stockings....
, first professional baseball team in Boston. Melvin Ohio Adams (1847–1920), lawyer for Lizzie Borden. Both Melvin Ohio and Ivers Whitney were grandsons of John Adams the Centenarian (1744–1848). Luther B. Adams (born 1829) and Andrew Jackson Adams (1828–1911), officers of the Boston Chair Manufacturing Company of Ashburnham, an aggressive innovator in mass production techniques and one of the three largest chair manufacturers in the United States in the third quarter of the nineteenth century.