Richard Nichols House : 483 Franklin Street

483 Franklin Street : Richard Nichols House. As if the setting of this house on top of a high rise of land was not enough to catch a passerby's eye, then certainly the pumpkin colored facade makes the old dwelling stand out. Previous owners made the choice of color after extensive research revealed it was an appropriate hue. Those owners also stripped away layers of "improvements" to highlight the massive fireplaces in the center chimney and early wood paneling along with other restoration efforts. A new addition similar to a Beverly jog, can be seen set back from the main house to the west. The offset windows on the easterly end near the street side are evidence of an early extension to the original, traditional structure. Named for its first owner, Richard Nichols, the house is more than 250 years old and provided shelter to generations of Nicholses. Richard Nichols inherited this land division shortly after his father's death in 1732. It is assumed he immediately set out to build this house, for he was married in 1738. The property, and another adjacent Nichols homestead covered over 143 acres and was farmed well into the late 1800s. In 1893, the house was sold and the last of the Nichols family departed from the land of their forefathers. There is a Richard Nichols listed as serving at Lexington and Concord and another entry for Richard Nichols, Jr. as a member of the training band. Whether it is entries for the same person or a father and son, there is evidence that a member from this household took up arms to promote our freedom.

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National Register of Historic Places ID: 84002760

Institution: Reading Public Library

Producer: Reading Public Library

Narrator: Virginia Adams

Massachusetts--Middlesex (county)--Reading

Franklin Street (Reading, Mass.)

Walkable Reading

03-2010

audio/mpeg

image/jpeg

eng

Reading, Mass. : Walkable Reading

Architecture, Domestic

Historic buildings

Dwellings

Nichols, Richard, 1706-1732

sound recording-nonmusical

still image

Sound recordings

Photographs