Simon Thompson was the earliest owner of this lot. In 1675, he bequeathed to his grandson, Simon Wood, the house where he dwelt and to his granddaughter, Mary Wood, an acre of land (Ips. Deeds 4: 33). On July 1, 1754, the heirs of Simon Wood, for twelve shillings apiece, sold three-quarters of an acre “with a certain message” to Mercy Wood Merrifield, wife of Thomas Merrifield (100: 146). Daniel Wood sold her the remainder of his share in the estate (also including a “certain message”) on Nov. 6, 1754 (100: 263).
Multiple additions define the appearance of this large house. The oldest section, a one-over-one structure on the southwest side, was believed by Abbot Lowell Cummings to be a late First Period structure and may be one of the two houses included in the deeds from the Wood family. This part of the house sits on a sloping ledge, and only one beam remains from the original first-floor framing.
This house retains Federal interior features throughout. Fireplaces throughout the house are of the Rumford design, indicating construction around the beginning of the 19th century. One of the unique features is the cooking fireplace on the second floor of the post-1792 section of the house, suggesting that more than one generation of the Merrifield family was living in the house. A bake oven is in the rear corner of that fireplace. Bake ovens in New England homes began transitioning from the rear of fireplaces to the front or side walls during the late 18th century.
Francis Merrifield
Deacon Francis Merrifield Sr. (1735-1814) was the son of Thomas and Mercy Merrifield and married Hannah Lakeman in 1759, with whom he had 13 children. Francis Merrifield was a veteran of the French and Indian War and served as a lieutenant in Capt. Nathaniel Wade’s Co. during the Revolutionary War. He fought in the Battle of Bunker Hill and commented, “When they got so near we could fairly see them, they looked too handsome to be fired at, but we had to do it.” Merrifield became a Deacon in the old South Church that faced the South Green.
A small King James Bible, carried at the Battle of Bunker Hill by Francis Merrifield Sr. on June 17, 1775, and inscribed by its owner, is part of the collection at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia. After the battle, Merrifield wrote at length inside the front and back covers, thanking God for sparing his life.
On the reverse of the New Testament title page, Merrifield wrote: “Cambridge, Jun 17, 1775. I desire to bless God for His kind appearance in delivering me and sparing my life in the late battle fought on Bunker’s Hill. I desire to devote this spared life to His Glory and honor. In witness my hand, Francis Merrifield.” Below this, he wrote a poem on his hope for divine grace.”–Museum of the American Revolution
The Ipswich Vital Records show the death of Francis Merrifield in 1825. His son Francis Merrifield Jr. was born Sept. 21, 1761, and married Hannah Lakeman, who was the daughter of John Lakeman (1710-1797) and Hannah Hodgkins (1716-1792), of Ipswich.
Later History of the House
The ten surviving heirs of Deacon Francis Merrifield (son of Mercy Merrifield) sold the homestead to John A. Kimball on Jan. 26, 1830 (258: 58). The price shown in the 1830 deed was $160.00. Kimball sold the house and lot to Charles Giddings on Sept. 25, 1835 (284: 232). The price was ten hundred & fifty dollars”, suggesting significant improvements to the property during his five-year ownership.
Vivian Endicott
This was the home of Vivian Endicott, who at the age of 90 was still active in Ipswich town committees. Vivian is best remembered for her work to save the “Little Red House” on South Main Street, which the town was planning to tear down. She and a group of Ipswich residents joined their efforts to save the house, now used as the Ipswich Visitor Center and known as the Hall-Haskell House. Vivian Endicott died in 2007 at the age of 102. The Merrifield House, also known as Rosebank, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and is a past recipient of the Mary P. Conley Award.
Francis Merrifield Jr.
Francis Merrifield Sr. sold to his son, Francis Jr., a house lot, out of the homestead” abutting on Stephen Smith, Aug. 29, 1792 (155: 108)”. Francis Sr. also sold a lot of the same size, 63 ft. front, 36 ft. deep, to Thomas Merrifield on July 14, 1801 (170: 140). No structures or buildings are mentioned in either deed.
The lot that Francis Merrifield Jr. paid £3 to his father for the lot at 9 Woods Lane and constructed the house still standing at that location (155:108). The deed from his father read, “being a part of my homestead in Ipswich…with the privilege of using the well on my homestead and crossing my land for the same.” The heirs of Francis Merrifeld Jr. sold the house and land to Mary Wade on Aug. 21, 1827 (251: 83). Miss Wade bought of Abigail Kimball, widow, and others, the corner lot, formerly the property of Stephen Smith, Jan. 24, 1829 (250: 222), and a lot on the northeast side of her property of Thomas Merrifield, who had acquired it from his father, April 18, 1834 (273: 304). Mary Wade apparently never married and bequeathed her estate to her nephew, Francis H. Wade.
Sources:
Historic Ipswich 