Skip to content

Historic Ipswich

On the Massachusetts North Shore

  • Home
  • Search
  • About
  • Visit
  • Hall-Haskell House Gallery
  • Events
  • Posts
  • History
  • American Revolution
  • Historic Houses
  • Essex County
  • Ancestry
  • Burying Grounds
  • Literature
  • Images
  • Maps
  • Recreation
  • Hiking
  • Cycling
  • Opinion
  • Walking Tours

Tag: North Main Street

1695 William Donton House: a Lost Architectural Treasure

January 4, 2025January 12, 2025 Gordon HarrisLeave a comment

William Donton, a mariner bought the lot on the corner of North Main and Summer Streets in 1695 and constructed a picturesque post-medieval-style house, a landmark whose disappearance we still regret today.

Posted in HousesTagged Farley, First Period, jetties, North Main Street, photography, post-medieval, William Dunton

John Sparks, Taverner, 6 North Main St. (1671)

March 7, 2024November 14, 2025 Gordon Harris6 Comments
Sparks Tavern

John Sparks was granted a license to open an inn and sell beer "at a penny a quart." The tavern became a popular stopping place on the Bay Road, where men of business would meet for food and drink. The Court met at this location, where it heard and dismissed charges of witchcraft.

Posted in HousesTagged North Main Street, sparks tavern
Ipswich MA historic photos by William Varrel

Your orders through Bookshop.org and Amazon.com help support this site.

Early Inhabitants of Ipswich, Massachusetts by Abraham Hammatt
Ipswich Massachusetts Revisited by William Varrel

© Gordon Harris 2026

Create a website or blog at WordPress.com
  • Subscribe Subscribed
    • Historic Ipswich
    • Join 277 other subscribers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Historic Ipswich
    • Subscribe Subscribed
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar

Loading Comments...