Historic architecture resources

Order a plaque for your historic home

Ipswich sources of information:

Partial List of Historic Houses compiled for the Ipswich Historical Commission, updated in 2021 from Sue Nelson’s 2006 list, including dates of construction, historic name, and information relevant to the Demolition Review Bylaw and the Architectural Preservation District.
The Ipswich Patriot Properties site is the fallback when research has not been done. It is not reliable for date of construction but is the source of many photos on this site. Click on the Parcel ID to view a property. On the property page, the Salem Deeds book and page number are shown as the Legal Reference.” This is the deed for the current owner. Deeds generally list the name of the previous owner and their deed’s book and page. You can search deeds backwards this way on the Salem Deeds site.
Detailed house and lot research in “Ipswich in the Massachusetts Bay Colony” Vol. 1 by Thomas Franklin Waters. The book is available on Archive.org with an updated search window.
The Ipswich inventory on the MACRIS site (This is the official inventory, but is now 40 years old and somewhat outdated.
Salem Deeds Record Search: This is a very useful resource for viewing or researching lot deeds back to the 17th Century. Because the site uses ASPX, the first click on a Salem Deeds link takes you to their home page but it starts a session. Click on the deed link again, or use the Book and Page feature to search a deed. MAKE SURE TO CLICK ON IMAGE to see the results (do not hit return).
Salem Deeds Index Search Use the Index Books to search by name and time period. NOTE: you must use the search button. Hitting return will take you back to the home page .
Salem Deeds homeowners search.
Architectural Styles
The annual Mary Conley Award
Historic Houses Partial List (PDF)
Preservation Agreements
MACRIS
Demolition Delay Bylaw
Architectural Preservation District
Photos of First Period and covenanted houses by Johanne Cassia for the Ipswich Historical Commission.

Historic maps of Ipswich

Thomas Franklin Waters researched the early lot assignments in the 1641 map of land grants (which combines Diagrams 1-5). The 1832-1910 maps show the names of the owners. The later maps show the actual shape of the house.