26 County Street, the John M. Dunnels house (1867)

The County Commissioners laid out County Street from the South Green to Green Street on March 5, 1861, and the Town voted on March 11th to build the road and bridge. The land on the east side had until that time was owned by the County as part of the Jail property. The John M. Dunnels house first appears in the 1872 Ipswich map, but records by the owner indicate that the house was constructed in 1867.

John Manning Dunnels (aka Dunnells) was the son of John H. and Elizabeth Ann Dunnels, born Sept. 11, 1838. He was the grandson of Amos Dunnels, whose home on South Main was moved to County Street. On August 15, 1862, the Salem Gazette announced that a full quota of Ipswich men had enlisted under the Call of Duty for the Civil War. John M. Dunnels, occupation tinsmith was among them, assigned to Company K, 3nd Mass. His enlistment expired in May, 1864.

The photo below shows John M. Dunnels in front of his iron and sheet metal shop. The 1895 Ipswich Town Report shows that John M. Dunnels was paid for “Repairs of Street Pumps.”