The Old Ladies’ Home on Olive Street
The house on the north corner of Olive and Russia Streets in Newburyport, 22 Olive Street, is a classic example of mid-19th-century architecture. It is a substantial two-story brick house originally built by Moody Pearson in 1838 for his family of eight. Moody Pearson started his career selling fish, wheat, wood, and vegetables on John Pearson’s Wharf. He later focused specifically on the sale of lumber with a business on Brown’s Wharf at the foot of Green Street.
After Pearson died, his family sold the house to the Society for the Relief of Aged Females for $3,000. This Society was officially formed in 1839 as a benevolent institution to support elderly women with monthly packages of tea, coffee, sugar, and other supplies. Income to the group gradually increased and in 1866, the Society received a donation of $3,000 to specifically purchase a building to house “aged women” from Newburyport. Moody Pearson’s house became the “Old Ladies’ Home” of Newburyport that year. The Society raised additional money to complete the needed repairs to the house, furnish it, and maintain it for its initial 24 residents, or “inmates” as they were referred to by the Articles of their house rules. In 1892, the Old Ladies’ Home moved to 75 High Street, the home of Martha G. Wheelwright. Martha Wheelwright was the donor who originally funded the investment in the 22 Olive Street house and was deeply committed to the organization.
After the Society for the Relief of Aged Females vacated its Olive Street location, the house was divided into two units. It remained two units for more than 100 years. In 2021, Matt and Jess Little purchased the property. The Littles are restoring the house back to its original single-family form.
Architecturally, 22 Olive Street was well-built, substantial in scope, and comfortable for a prosperous family in the mid-1800s. It is a two-story, brick house with a shallow, hipped roof. In the attic, the hip roof is framed with major handcrafted wood beams and a king post in the center. Most of the original Greek Revival elements still remain on the interior and exterior of the house and are being restored by the Littles. There is a straight-run stair with a mahogany banister opposite the newly refinished front door on Olive Street, high, molded wood baseboards throughout, and fireplaces in many rooms. Some of the original interior doorways were enclosed during earlier renovations but are being opened back up to restore the original house flow.
The next time you walk around NBPT@3MPH, take a look at the beautiful features of 22 Olive Street and imagine the “inmates” enjoying a cup of afternoon tea in the front room.
Barb Bailey is a researcher for the Newburyport Preservation Trust. She may be reached at Barb.Bailey03@gmail.com.
