Have you seen this house? Well, of course you’ve “seen” The Gedney House as you walk or drive through Salem. It is located at 21 High Street. But have you been inside it?
If you have not, today, Sept. 5th, is your chance, courtesy of Historic New England. You are invited to visit Gedney House during Seventeenth Century Saturdays and see why it is not your typical historic house. View original post-and-beam timbers, brick nogging, and early decorative finishes in Salem’s second oldest historic house.
The house is significant not only for its framing, but also for its evidence of early decorative finishes in the hall chamber and parlor. Three successive color schemes, the earliest of which is believed to date to the house’s construction (The Gedney House was originally built in 1665 by Eleazer Gedney and his new wife, Elizabeth Turner), were discovered in the hall chamber. This evidence was preserved by the addition of plaster ceilings, beam casings, and paneled walls by the mid-eighteenth century.
For a full history of the house from being a single family residence to an investment property to a rental property and eventually a museum, go to this Historic New England web page.
Tours are $5 for adults and free for Historic New England members and Salem residents. The museum will be open from 11am – 3pm with tours available on the hour. Space on tours is limited due to the structure of the house.
For more details call 978-744-0440 or visit www.historicnewengland.org . The Gedney House will be open one final time to the public in 2015 on October 3rd for the final Seventeenth Century Saturday.
