The Stephen Phillips House is a

historic house A historic house generally meets several criteria before being listed by an official body as "historic." Generally the building is at least a certain age, depending on the rules for the individual list. A second factor is that the building be in ...

and museum located in the McIntire Historic District in Salem,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

, United States and was designed by Samuel McIntyre. Phillips House began with Elias Hasket Derby, one of America's first self-made

millionaire A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. In countries that use the short scal ...

s from the sea trade. When he died in 1799, his daughter, Elizabeth and her husband, Captain Nathaniel West, inherited his farm in Danvers, Massachusetts. They built a country house on the property, sparing little expense. A grand estate was in the making. In 1806, shortly after the house was completed, a divorce forced Nathaniel off the property. After Elizabeth died in 1814, the house was left to her three daughters. When one of the daughters died in 1819, Nathaniel inherited one-third of the estate. He proceeded to move four rooms to Salem, the museum's present location. At that time, he added a hallway, a third floor, and a back ell section. In 1911, Stephen W. Phillips bought the house, moving in with five generations of family furnishings. He lived in the house until his death in 1955. The house remains as it was at that time, containing an eclectic collection representing the Phillips's extensive travels. The Phillips House is now owned and operated as a

historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a ...

Historic New England Historic New England, previously known as the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities (SPNEA), is a charitable, non-profit, historic preservation organization headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. It is focused on New England ...

and is open for public tours. The house was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1983.

1820 Salem Massachusetts map bySaunders BPL 12094

References

External links

The Stephen Phillips House website
{{Authority control Houses in Salem, Massachusetts Historic house museums in Massachusetts Museums in Salem, Massachusetts Historic New England Houses completed in 1806 1800s architecture in the United States Federal architecture in Massachusetts

See also

References

External links