36 South Main St., the Hall-Haskell House (Ipswich Visitor Center), 1820

Just past the Choate Bridge on South Main Street the Ipswich Visitor Center is located in the Hall – Haskell House, sometimes called the “Little Red House.”

The Ipswich Visitor Center, located in the 1820 Hall-Haskell House sits at the heart of our town on the Center Green, in one of several national historic districts in town. The Hall Haskell House operates spring through fall as an art gallery and welcome center, providing an abundance of maps and brochures, and a self-guided audio tour. The Ipswich Visitor Center is staffed entirely by friendly and well-informed volunteers. The left side of the Hall-Haskell house is a gallery that showcases a variety of local & regional artists (changing weekly, June – October).

Ipswich Visitor Center Hours: Open 7-days a week June – October. Call (978) 356-8540

11am – 3pm Monday thru Wednesday
10am – 4pm Thursday thru Sunday

History of the Hall-Haskell House

Earlier structures stood at this site before mariner Charles Hall and his wife bought the property in 1819. In 1820 they built this house, where they lived upstairs and ran a general store on the lower floor. After his death in 1825 the house was sold to the widow Eunice Smith Caldwell Haskell. Eventually the property was acquired by wealthy businessman John Heard, whose descendants continued to own the house into the 20th century.

In the 1980s the house was in bad condition and came close to being demolished by the town. In 1987 the town received a matching grant from the Massachusetts Historical Commission to help restore the structure. It was saved due to the efforts of Terri Stephens, Vivian Endicott, Paul McGinley, Paula bishop, Stephanie Gaskins, Don Curiale and the Essex Heritage Commission.

Don Curiale wrote, “I remain proud of our Ipswich Center, our enduring spirit of volunteerism, and other local citizens who raised funds and restored the house. After many fund-raisers and work on the house it was opened as an art space and later became home to the Ipswich Visitor Center. A bench dedicated to Vivian Endicott is in the garden behind the house.” In 1991, members of the advanced woodworking class at Ipswich High School raised the beam that supports the ceiling of the Ipswich Arts side of the Hall Haskell House. The little red house on South Main Street now serves as the Ipswich Visitor Center, open in the summer months as an art gallery.

Hall – Haskell House, 36 S. Main St. Preservation Agreement

Visitor Center pages

1 thought on “36 South Main St., the Hall-Haskell House (Ipswich Visitor Center), 1820”

A most interesting area where I completed High School at the old school in 1955. I departed for the USAF in1957 and never came home to live as my Air Force carrier kept me moving until I retired in Sherwood Arkansas in 1979. Carl