Gen. James Mitchell Varnum House | |
Location | East Greenwich, Rhode Island |
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Coordinates | 41°39′49″N71°27′6″W / 41.66361°N 71.45167°W |
Built | 1773 |
Part of | East Greenwich Historic District (ID74000036) |
NRHP reference No. | 71000016 [1] |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | August 12, 1971 |
Designated CP | June 13, 1974 |
The General James Mitchell Varnum House is an historic house at 57 Peirce Street in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. The 2+1⁄2-story wood-frame house was built in 1773 for James Mitchell Varnum, who later served as a general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. It is five bays wide, with two interior brick chimneys. Its main entry is sheltered by a portico supported by fluted Ionic columns and pilasters. A 19th-century addition extends from the rear of the main block. Notable later residents of the house include George A. Brayton, who served as Chief Justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court. The house was purchased in 1939 by the Varnum Continentals, and has since served as a museum. [2]
The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. [1]
East Greenwich is a town and the county seat of Kent County, Rhode Island. The population was 14,312 at the 2020 census. East Greenwich is the wealthiest municipality within the state of Rhode Island. It is part of the Providence metropolitan statistical area and the Greater Boston combined statistical area.
James Mitchell Varnum was an American legislator, lawyer, general in the Continental Army, and a pioneer to the Ohio Country.
The 1st Rhode Island Regiment was a regiment in the Continental Army raised in Rhode Island during the American Revolutionary War (1775–83). It was one of the few units in the Continental Army to serve through the entire war, from the siege of Boston to the disbanding of the Continental Army on November 3, 1783.
The Isaac Bell House is a historic house and National Historic Landmark at 70 Perry Street in Newport, Rhode Island. Also known as Edna Villa, it is one of the outstanding examples of Shingle Style architecture in the United States. It was designed by McKim, Mead, and White, and built during the Gilded Age, when Newport was the summer resort of choice for some of America's wealthiest families.
The Old Colony House, also known as Old State House or Newport Colony House, is located at the east end of Washington Square in the city of Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It is a brick Georgian-style building completed in 1741, and was the meeting place for the colonial legislature. From independence in 1776 to the early 20th century, the state legislature alternated its sessions between here and the Rhode Island State House in Providence.
The Old State House on College Hill in Providence, Rhode Island, also known as Providence Sixth District Court House,Providence Colony House, Providence County House, and Rhode Island State House is located on 150 Benefit Street, with the front facade facing North Main Street. It is a brick Georgian-style building largely completed in 1762. It was used as the meeting place for the colonial and state legislatures for 149 years.
The Clement Weaver–Daniel Howland House is a historic stone-ender timber frame house built in 1679. This rare example of primitive 17th-century architecture is located at 125 Howland Road in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. It is the oldest documented dwelling house in Kent County and the second oldest home in Rhode Island.
The Stephen Allen House is an historic house on Sharp Street, on the northeast corner of its junction with Rhode Island Route 102, in West Greenwich, Rhode Island. The main block of this 1+1⁄2-story Cape style wood-frame house was built c. 1787 by Stephen Allen, a farmer. The house is five bays wide, with a central chimney and a center entry which is framed by a later Greek Revival surround. There is a 1+1⁄2-story ell extending to the east (right) of the main block. To the east of the main house stands what originally appeared to be a shed that has since been converted for use as a small horse stable. Evidence suggests this structure was built sometime before 1862 as a store.
The Joseph and William Russell House is a historic house at 118 North Main Street in the College Hill area of Providence, Rhode Island. It is a brick Georgian house built in 1772. Its original interior woodwork has been removed and distributed among museums around the United States.
The Armory of the Kentish Guards is a historic armory at Armory and Peirce Streets in East Greenwich, Rhode Island and is currently home to the Kentish Guards, a historic Rhode Island Independent Military Organization.
East Greenwich Historic District is a historic district encompassing the historic commercial and civic heart of East Greenwich, Rhode Island, United States. The district bounded on the east by Greenwich Cove, an inlet on Narrangansett Bay, on the south by London and Spring Streets, on the west roughly by Park Street, and on the north by Division Street. The district extends westward on Division Street as far Dark Entry Brook, and the district properties on its north side now lie in the city of Warwick. East Greenwich was settled in 1677 with its town center growing in the district, with a rural farm landscape to the west. The area's road network had begun to take shape by the mid-18th century, and the town center was industrialized in the 19th century.
Fry's Hamlet Historic District is a historic district in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. The district encompasses about 272 acres (110 ha) of a predominantly rural and agricultural landscape. The central characteristic of the district is a cluster of three farmsteads, including four primary dwellings, four barns, and numerous additional outbuildings. Three of the four houses were built in the 18th century, and are associated with the Fry and Spencer families that long farmed this area.
The Kent County Courthouse, now the East Greenwich Town Hall, is a historic court building at 127 Main Street in East Greenwich, Rhode Island.
The Colonel Micah Whitmarsh House is an historic house in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. The 2+1⁄2-story Greek Revival style brick house was built c. 1767-1771 by John Reynolds, and acquired in 1773 by Micah Whitmarsh, a founding member of the local Kentish Guards militia, which are located nearby in the Armory of the Kentish Guards. It is distinctive as the only brick house on Main Street. It has been owned since 1966 by the East Greenwich Historical Society.
The Rhode Island Army National Guard (RIARNG) is the land force militia for the U.S. state of Rhode Island. It operates under Title 10 and Title 32 of the United States Code and operates under the command of the state governor while not in federal service. National Guard units may function under arms in a state status, therefore they may be called up for active duty by the governor to help respond to domestic emergencies and disasters, such as those caused by hurricanes, floods, or civil unrest.
George A. Brayton was a justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court from 1843 to 1874, serving as chief justice from 1868 to 1874.
Thomas Holden was a general in the American Revolutionary War and later a justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court. Holden was born in Warwick, Rhode Island, and was a farmer there. He joined Varnum's Regiment in 1775 as a captain and the following year served with the Rhode Island Brigade. Holden became a Rhode Island militia colonel in 1778 and fought in the Newport Campaign that year. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1788 and 1789 and promoted to brigadier general in the militia in 1779 and to major general in 1790. Holden served as a justice of the state supreme court from 1797 until 1801.
The Varnum Continentals are an active independent military organization of the Rhode Island militia that was founded in 1903 and currently serve primarily as a ceremonial honor guard and as historic educational organization in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. The Warren Varnum Continentals operate the historic Varnum Memorial Armory, an armory museum at 6 Main Street in East Greenwich, which was built in 1913, and housed Rhode Island State and National Guard units from 1918 to 1996. The Varnum Continentals were named after Revolutionary War General James Mitchell Varnum, a founder of the Kentish Guards, and the Continentals are dedicated to preserving Varnum's memory.
Oliver Wickes was a skilled carpenter who became an enlisted soldier and military officer serving with the Rhode Island Militia during the Revolutionary War.