Salem Women's
History and
Business Community
History and
Business Community
Gardner-Pingree House
128 Essex Street — Open to the public
(tours begin at the Peabody Essex Museum, East India Square, which owns this historic house museum)
The magnificent ca. 1804 Gardner-Pingree House, designed primarily by Samuel McIntire, Salem’s most famous architect and wood carver, is furnished to interpret the merchant class lives of John and Elizabeth Gardner during Salem's height as a maritime trading port. According to tour guides, Mrs. Gardner “loved to cook” and could often be found in her “state of the art kitchen” helping to prepare meals alongside her servants. The kitchen is well appointed, complete with “the latest” equipment for baking and providing water for cooking and cleaning.
The “public side” of the house, where the Gardners entertained, features two sumptuous parlors — one for the gentlemen to retire to after dinner, and one for the ladies. Objects include a lovely sewing table, an extensive set of Cantonware for entertaining, a handsomely outfitted master bed, lady’s vanity table and personal objects.
Behind the house are the Louise DuPont Crowninshield Gardens, featuring the ca. 1800 Derby “summer house,” moved from Wakefield, Massachusetts. Crowninshield was a relentless preservationist in Salem and nearby Marblehead, wanting to preserve the material culture left behind by her husband’s prominent family, the Crowninshields. In Salem, she was centrally involved in preserving the Derby House for the National Park Service. She was also active with what is now the Peabody Essex Museum where a gallery is named for her.
(tours begin at the Peabody Essex Museum, East India Square, which owns this historic house museum)
The magnificent ca. 1804 Gardner-Pingree House, designed primarily by Samuel McIntire, Salem’s most famous architect and wood carver, is furnished to interpret the merchant class lives of John and Elizabeth Gardner during Salem's height as a maritime trading port. According to tour guides, Mrs. Gardner “loved to cook” and could often be found in her “state of the art kitchen” helping to prepare meals alongside her servants. The kitchen is well appointed, complete with “the latest” equipment for baking and providing water for cooking and cleaning.
The “public side” of the house, where the Gardners entertained, features two sumptuous parlors — one for the gentlemen to retire to after dinner, and one for the ladies. Objects include a lovely sewing table, an extensive set of Cantonware for entertaining, a handsomely outfitted master bed, lady’s vanity table and personal objects.
Behind the house are the Louise DuPont Crowninshield Gardens, featuring the ca. 1800 Derby “summer house,” moved from Wakefield, Massachusetts. Crowninshield was a relentless preservationist in Salem and nearby Marblehead, wanting to preserve the material culture left behind by her husband’s prominent family, the Crowninshields. In Salem, she was centrally involved in preserving the Derby House for the National Park Service. She was also active with what is now the Peabody Essex Museum where a gallery is named for her.
