Quincy Homestead
34 Butler Road
Quincy, Massachusetts 02169
The early seat of one of our Nation’s most influential families, the Dorothy Quincy Homestead, is a remarkable example of American architectural and cultural history. Beginning with the settlement of Edmund Quincy I c.1635, five generations of the Quincy family placed their imprint upon the property. The stately mansion was the childhood home of Dorothy Quincy Hancock, the first First Lady of Massachusetts and the wife of John Hancock, president of the Second Continental Congress, first signer of the Declaration of Independence, and first governor of the Commonwealth. Quincy family descendants include Colonel John Quincy, after whom the City of Quincy was named, Abigail Smith Adams, wife of President John Adams and mother of President John Quincy Adams, Josiah Quincy, lawyer and patriot, and many others who helped to shape this country.
The Homestead demonstrates the evolution of over 300 years of American architecture beginning c.1680. Additions c.1706 and c.1737 re-oriented the house and altered the façade to the popular Georgian style. The fenestration on the east façade offers insight into the progression of the Homestead’s design as each generation responded to European style. The Homestead was also the first historic house restoration project of the renowned 20th century architect, Joseph Everett Chandler, who later restored such historic properties as the Paul Revere House in Boston and the House of Seven Gables in Salem, Massachusetts.
The two-acre grounds include a variety of trees, native plants, and a formal parterre, which reflects the Colonies’ adoption of European social and cultural standards. One of the fascinating objects on display is the John Hancock Chariot, built in England c.1777, captured by American privateers, and presented to Hancock.
The Dorothy Quincy Homestead was purchased in 1904 by The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in The Commonwealth of Massachusetts (NSCDA-MA) as part of its mission to preserve historic patriotic sites. A National Historic Landmark, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The grounds and buildings are owned by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and operated in cooperation with NSCDA-MA in a public-private partnership. The Dorothy Quincy Homestead grounds and gardens are open daily to the public at no charge. Only dogs on leash are allowed on the Homestead property per The MA Department of Conservation and Recreation.
Please check our website nscda.org or our Facebook page Quincy Homestead 1686 for any possible schedule changes.
Website link: https://nscdama.org/properties/dorothy-quincy-homestead/
Image Credits: nscdama.org unless otherwise noted
