Built in 1648, the General Israel Putnam House is a historic first-period house in Danvers, Massachusetts.
The house is a 2 1/2-story Colonial-style house with clapboard siding and a gable and gambrel roof. It was built on the Putnams’ 100-acre plot of farmland and has remained in the Putnam family for over three centuries.
Located on Maple Street, the house was built for Lieutenant Thomas Putnam and is named after his grandson Israel Putnam who was born in the house and later became a notable general in the Revolutionary War.
After Lieutenant Thomas Putnam died in 1686, he bequeathed the house to his youngest son, Joseph Putnam, instead of his eldest son, Thomas Putnam, which caused friction in the family.
Joseph Putnam lived in the house in 1692 when the Salem Witch Trials began. Joseph spoke out against the trials, even though his brother Thomas Putnam, sister-in-law Ann Putnam Sr and niece Ann Putnam Jr were the main accusers in the trials.
It is rumored that Joseph feared being accused by his brother so much that for six months, until the trials ended, he kept his firelock loaded and within reach and he kept his fastest horse saddled in the stable at all times in case he was accused and needed to flee suddenly.
In 1718, Joseph’s 11th child, Israel Putnam, was born in the house and later grew up to lead his troops into battle during the Battle of Bunker Hill where he reportedly gave his famous orders “don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes” (this quote has been attributed to other generals in the battle too so it is not clear who actually said it.)
When Joseph died in 1724, he bequeathed the house to his sons David and Israel but they were still too young to take charge of the property.
In 1727, their mother remarried, to Captain Thomas Perley, and the family went to live at her new husband’s house. David was finally old enough to take charge of the house and the portion of the farm his father left him at this point.
When Israel turned 21 years old in 1738, he took charge of his portion of the property and built a house in a field near the old homestead.
In 1740, Israel decided to relocate to Connecticut and he sold seven different portions of his inheritance to his brother David to purchase land in Connecticut.
The Putnam house was enlarged and remodeled at least twice during this time, once in 1744 and again in 1831.
The 1744 addition, on the south portion of the house, has two-and-a-half floors, a gambrel roof, and a central chimney. In 1831, a second floor was added to the original 1648 structure which added two additional rooms, an attic, and a gable roof.
A one-story frame kitchen was also added to the north side of the 1648 structure during the 19th century. In 1800, Israel’s son Daniel Putnam was living in the house and he built a clapboard factory building on the property where he operated a shoe-making factory that manufactured brogans.
In 1951, Galo Putnam Emerson, owner of the property and descendant of General Putnam, converted the old shoe factory building into a candy and ice cream shop called Putnam Pantry, which still exists today.
Most of the property’s original 100 acres of farmland was seized by eminent domain by the state and federal governments over the years.
On April 30, 1976, the Putnam House was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
In 1991, the house was gifted to the Danvers Historical Society by Putnam descendants John, Miriam, and Edward Emerson on behalf of the General Israel Putnam Homestead Trust along with a $100,000 endowment maintenance fund. The donation included the entire contents of the house such as the furniture, clothing, papers, and also the land.
The Danvers Historical Society made several attempts to restore the house but was unable to raise enough funds to do so.
By 2011, the family gave the society another $165,000 towards maintenance and repairs and an additional $100,000 in 2016 to take care of a mold problem.
In 2017, the Danvers Historical Society voted to sell the house to a private owner who planned to convert a portion of the house into a sober living facility.
After learning of the potential sale, the family took the Danvers Historical Society to court and asked a judge to return the house to the General Israel Putnam Homestead Trust, saying that the historical society had failed to live up to its promise to maintain the property.
In January 2020, the members of the Danvers Historical Society voted in favor of selling the house back to the General Israel Putnam Homestead Trust.
In 2021, the Danvers Historical Society settled its dispute with the General Israel Putnam Homestead Trust and sold the house back to the trust for $225,000.
The house is not open to the public but visitors can visit the Putnam Pantry candy shop located adjacent to the house.
Sources:
Livingston, William Farrand. Israel Putnam: Pioneer, Ranger, and Major-General. The Knickerbocker Press, 1901.
“SHOE FACTORY.; Stands in Danvers, Mass., and the Sons of Israel Putnam Began the Manufacture There.” New York Times, nytimes.com/1902/01/26/archives/shoe-factory-stands-in-danvers-mass-and-the-sons-of-israel-putnam.html
Manganis, Julie. “Settlement returns historic Putnam Homestead to descendants.” The Salem News, 30 July. 2021, yahoo.com/news/settlement-returns-historic-putnam-homestead-134800852.html
“Our History.” Putnam Pantry, putnampantry.com/parties/about/our-history/
Anderson, Buck. “Family to buy back Danvers’ historic 1648 Putnam House.” Salem News, 19 Jan. 2020, salemnews.com/news/local_news/family-to-buy-back-danvers-historic-1648-putnam-house/article_fcc7c84d-d21f-5e36-960a-c608ec24158e.html
“Danvers Historical Society Sells General Israel Putnam House Back To Family.” Antiques and the Arts Weekly, 3 Aug. 2021, antiquesandthearts.com/danvers-historical-society-sells-general-israel-putnam-house-back-to-family/
“Danvers Historical Society Settles Future of Historic General Israel Putnam House with Putnam Descendant Group Trust.” Danvers Historical Society, danvershistory.org/2021/07/danvers-historical-society-settles-future-of-historic-general-israel-putnam-house-with-putnam-descendant-group-trust/
“The Danvers Museum at the Israel Putnam House.” The Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project, salem.lib.virginia.edu/putnamhse.html
“Danvers Putnam family member dies at 100.” Wicked Local, 5 Nov. 2009, wickedlocal.com/story/herald-citizen/2009/11/05/danvers-putnam-family-member-dies/39552014007/
“Historic Building Detail: DAN.51 Putnam, Gen. Israel House.” MACRIS, mhc-macris.net/details?mhcid=DAN.51