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Old Peabody house saved for a new purpose

By Matthew K. Roy
Staff writer
Published: January 15, 2009

PEABODY — It was within inches of becoming a pile of rubble, but the old house at 83 Aborn St. now has a second shot at life.

The house, an example of Gothic architecture that dates back to 1847, will be moved a half-mile from its location downtown to land owned by the Peabody Historical Society on Washington Street. It will eventually serve as the society's new archive and library.

"It's a huge undertaking," said Bill Power, chairman of the Historical Commission.

The house was to be demolished late last year to make room for a three-home development. But Power was able to persuade the city's building commissioner to issue a last-minute cease-and-desist order. The reprieve silenced the engine of a backhoe poised to knock down the house.

Power scrambled to find an alternative to demolition.

The house sits on an Aborn Street parcel that has been subdivided into three lots. Developer Mario Scire intends to remove the house and build three new ones — a single-family dwelling and two duplexes — on the individual lots. The Gothic house, however, was too large to fit on one of the lots, so another location needed to be found. Power, who also helps run the Historical Society, didn't need to look far.

The old house will be put on a new foundation behind the society's Osborne-Salata House at 33 Washington St.

"It is an historic district so the home does fit in aesthetically and historically," he said.

The society's library, recently squeezed in the Salata House near art exhibits created by the society and the Peabody Art Association, will benefit from the new space, Power said.

But it will come at a cost — about $130,000 in all, according to Power. The city's Community Preservation Committee on Tuesday approved spending $90,000 on the project. The Historical Society will cover the remaining expense.

"We're committed to seeing this through," Power said.

The house has been lifted off its foundation and rests on steel beams and wood supports. The back of it has been temporarily removed so the house can be steered through the narrow streets of the surrounding neighborhood. Power hopes the house will be moved sometime next month.

In the meantime, the City Council has to endorse the use of preservation funds and the Zoning Board will need to approve special exemptions from the city's setback and parking requirements.

Gen. William Sutton built the house for his daughter, Elizabeth, and her husband, E.L. Pierson. Sutton was one of the wealthiest men in Massachusetts, his family money tied to wool factories in Peabody and North Andover.

He was a banker, as well, serving as the director of the South Danvers National Bank and the president of Salem Commercial Bank. Sutton won a seat in the state House of Representatives and Senate. He was also a senior major general in the state's volunteer militia.

"I'm glad that it's not going to be taken down," Allison White, 26, said yesterday of the Gothic house, where her grandmother and great-grandmother lived. "I grew up going over there."

White now lives in Medford, but she was in the area yesterday and stopped by Aborn Street to look at a property that was in her family for 65 years.

"That's cool," she said, when told the house will become a library.

Neighbors will have to be notified before the move and the Peabody Electric Light Department will have to move 47 wires, Power said.

Once the house is in place, it could be awhile before the society raises the money needed to transform the inside to accommodate its new purpose.

"We'll chisel away at it," Power said. "We don't have to get it done all at once."

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