The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.

The following Ipswich historic districts, buildings and structure are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

The East End Historic District - The East End includes the seafaring portion of the original village of Ipswich and offers an architectural history of the town’s development.

The Crane Estate (1928) - Castle Neck and Crane Beach have a long history of ownership by several families before being granted by the Cranes to the Trustees of Reservations.

South Green Historic District - The South Green dates from 1686, when the town voted that the area be held in common, and became known as the School House Green. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

Meeting House Green Historic District - The North Green was once the religious, governmental and commercial center of Ipswich, and where the town's most successful businessmen built fine Georgian, Federal, Greek Revival, Italianate and Victorian homes.

Ipswich Mills Historic District - Six parallel streets, 1st Street to 6th Street plus Estes and Kimball Streets were laid out by the Ipswich Mills Company to provide housing for their workers, many of whom were Polish. Most of the houses were purchased by residents when the mill closed in 1928.

High Street Historic District - High Street was on the "Old Bay Road" and has the largest concentration of “First Period” houses in America The Old Burying Ground is on High Street near Lords Square.

88 County Road, the Col. Nathaniel Wade House (1727) - This house was built in 1727 by Captain Thomas Wade. On September 25, 1780, his son Nathaniel Wade received an urgent correspondence from General George Washington that General Arnold had "gone to the enemy" and to take command at West Point. The house is protected by a preservation covenant with the Ipswich Historical Commission.

83 County Road, the Rogers-Brown-Rust House (1665-1723) - The house at 83 County Road is believed to be three houses joined together, at least one from the First Period. In 1836 the house and lot were conveyed to the South Parish as a church site. Asa Brown bought the house and removed it to its present location.

6 South Main Street, the Shoreborne Wilson – Samuel Appleton house (1685) - This house was built by joiner Sherborne Wilson,. The house was purchased in 1702 by Col. Samuel Appleton, the eldest son of Major Samuel Appleton. At the time it was still a two-room central chimney structure, and it is believed that Appleton expanded the building on the southeast side. The house is listed in the National Historic Register of Historic Places.

52 Jeffreys Neck Road, Ross Tavern – Lord Collins house (c 1690) - The house was moved from South Main Street in 1940 by David Wendel and restored to a high-style First Period appearance on the basis of observed physical evidence. The Collins-Lord house on High Street was moved and attached to the rear of this house.

5-7 Poplar Street, the Dr. John Calef house (1671) - This house was built on South Main St. between 1671 and 1688 by Deacon Thomas Knowlton. In the mid-18th Century the house was owned by Dr. John Calef, a Loyalist. John Heard moved the house to its present location in order to build his elaborate Federalist home which now houses the Ipswich Museum.

48 Market Street, the Bailey house (c 1887) - Dr. George Bailey served as medical examiner for Ipswich and Essex County. His shingle style Victorian home was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

47 Jeffreys Neck Road, the Paine house (1694) - This picturesque house remains on its original saltwater farm location. Three generations of the Paine family made their home here, From 1916, Greenwood Farm was a summer retreat for the Robert G. Dodge family, who used the Paine House as a guesthouse.

47 County Street, the Benjamin Grant house (1723) - The Benjamin Grant House was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It appears to have been originally built as a half house. Benjamin Grant was born in 1701 in Ipswich to Robert and Mary Grant, who emigrated from England. Benjamin married Anne Perkins in 1722, and was killed in the French and Indian War in 1756.

45 Heartbreak Road, the James Burnham house (1690) - The first period home was built in 1690 and has been remodeled greatly. It is an example of the distinct architecture that flowered in Ipswich in the late 17th century

43 Argilla Road, the Giddings – Burnham house (b 1667) - The earliest section of the Giddings-Burnham House at 43 Argilla Road in Ipswich was built in the mid-17th Century by carpenter George Giddings who immigrated from Norfolk, England. The earliest documentation for this property was the deed of sale between George Giddings and his brother-in-law Thomas Burnham in 1667.

421 Linebrook Road, the Abraham Howe barn (1725) - This early 18th century barn served several generations of the Howe family, and was converted to residential use in 1948. Elizabeth Howe, convicted as a witch and put to death in 1692, lived nearby

31 Fox Creek Road, Bennett’s Farm (1680) aka “Labor in Vain House.” - Henry Bennett, who was born in England but was one of the early settlers of Ipswich. He bought land for the 200-acre farm in 1654 from Jonathan Wade and became known as “Farmer Bennett."

251 Topsfield Road, Turner Hill (1900) - Construction on the Turner Hill mansion-house began in 1900 for Charles and Ann Rice. She was killed in an equestrian accident in 1933 and a decade later the estate was purchased by the La Salette Fathers. It is now a golf club and condominium development.

2 Turkey Shore, the Heard – Lakeman House (1776) - Nathaniel and John Heard bought this land in 1776 and built the present house. Nathaniel sold the house to Richard Lakeman III in 1795. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, and has a preservation agreement with the Ipswich Historical Commission.

168 Argilla Road, the Tilton-Smith house (c 1720) - Built circa 1720 by Abraham Tilton Jr., a 1998 fire took away much of its original frame, but the owner totally rebuilt the home with with materials salvaged from 18th and 19th century structures throughout New England.

153 Argilla Road, the Isaac Goodale House (1669) - This First Period house was built in West Peabody before 1695. In 1928 it was reconstructed at 153 Argilla Road by Robert and Susan Goodale.

15 South Main Street, the Caldwell Block (1870) - The Caldwell Block stands on the site of the former Massachusetts Woolen Manufactory, constructed by Dr. John Manning in 1794. The property was sold to Stephen Coburn in 1847 and housed the post office and other shops. The building was destroyed by fire, and in 1870 Col. Luther Caldwell erected the present building.

126 County Road, Cable Hospital (1916) - Cable Memorial Hospital was built in 1917 on the former Kimball estate, known in Colonial times as Windmill Hill. After his friend Benjamin Stickney Cable was killed in an automotive accident, Richard Teller Crane Jr. purchased the land and donated $145,000 to the hospital construction fund.

117 High Street, Brown’s Manor (1886) - Abraham Lord sold 30 acres to George A. Brown on Nov. 6, 1886. The Browns built this imposing brick Mansard with white alternating quoins, a fine entrance porch, and a round-headed, double-leaf door.

11 Woods Lane, the Merrifield house (1792) - The oldest part of the large house at 11 Woods Lane was built in 1792 by Francis Merrifield, Jr. who served as a lieutenant in Capt. Nathaniel Wade’s Co. during the Revolutionary War. The Merrifield House, also known as Rosebank, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and is a past recipient of the Mary P. Conley award.

1 Turkey Shore Road, the Burnham-Patch-Day house (1730) - This house has a preservation agreement with the Ipswich Historical Commission. The house was built by Thomas Burnham in 1730 on the foundation of the earlier house he bought in 1667. The large ell on Poplar Street was added in the early nineteenth-century. Abner Day bought the house of the heirs of John Patch in 1814 and kept a well-known tavern.

1 South Green, the Captain John Whipple House (1677) - The oldest part of the house dates to 1677 when Captain John Whipple constructed a townhouse near the center of Ipswich. The Historical Commission moved it over the Choate bridge to its current location and restored to its original appearance.

The Choate Bridge - The American Society of Civil Engineers cites the Choate Bridge in Ipswich as the oldest documented two-span masonry arch bridge in the U.S., and the oldest extant bridge in Massachusetts. 

List

Brown Stocking Mill Historic District
East End Historic District
High Street Historic District
Ipswich Mills Historic District
Meetinghouse Green Historic District
South Green Historic District
Bailey House
Brown’s Manor
Burnham, James, House
Burnham-Patch House
Cable, Benjamin Stickney, Memorial Hospital
Caldwell Block
Calef, Dr. John, House
Castle Hill
Choate Bridge
Giddings–Burnham House
Goodale, Isaac, House
Grant, Benjamin, House
Heard-Lakeman House
House on Labor-in-Vain Road
Howe Barn
Merrifield House
Paine–Dodge House
Ross Tavern
Rust, Nathaniel, Mansion
Smith House
Turner Hill
Wade House
Whipple, John, House
Wilson, Shoreborne, House