Iron Works House

17th century house at Saugus Iron Works

NPS Photo

Quick Facts

Location:

Saugus, Massachusetts

Significance:

Dating to the 1680s, the Iron Works House is the oldest building on the property

Amenities

1 listed

Scenic View/Photo Spot

The Iron Works House is the only structure at Saugus Iron Works that survives from the 1600s. The company agent may have lived in it while the iron works was in operation, but its date of construction is unknown. The earliest recorded occupant, Samuel Appleton Jr., bought the Saugus Iron Works in 1676 (after it closed) and lived in the house from 1681 to 1688. 

By the early 1800s the house had been greatly altered from its original state and was being used to house mill workers. Over the years, it was home to many occupants. Its appearance changed as style changed, but most of the structure remained original.

Its rescue and restoration efforts are owed to a photographer named Wallace Nutting who dramatically changed the appearance of the house when he purchased it in 1915. Nutting bought the house to use as a tourist attraction, a studio for colonial-themed photography, and to showcase his collection of antique furniture. He restored the house to what he thought it would have looked like in the 1600s, giving it the appearance we see today. Nutting sold the property in 1920.

Some rooms contain period and reproduction furnishings to show what life would have been like for those who lived here in the 1600s. Other rooms have exhibits about Wallace Nutting and home construction at the time.