Swansea House   -   circa 1731

The Swansea House is a rural, gable-roofed, central chimney structure with one-and-a-half stories.  The house is typical of the Narragansett Basin.  There is a fair amount of original fabric on the interior – mantles, moldings, and doors.

This house originally stood in Swansea, Massachusetts and was disassembled by NRF in 1977.  It was one of a number of houses scheduled for demolition and offered to the NRF in the last minute hope of its rescue.  This in part explains the lack of history on the house, as even the names associated with it are lost.

It is difficult to assimilate houses from off Aquidneck Island (on which the city of Newport is located); they have different style influences than those found in Newport or its environs.  During the late 1960s and ‘70s, however, saving and preserving a structure was of prime importance to those dedicated to preservation.  NRF did not seek these buildings - quite the opposite was the norm. Those individuals intent on seeing certain buildings saved sought out NRF as the best available resource for quick and effective action.

With advice from several consultants, including Antoinette Downing, (co-author with Vincent J. Scully, Jr. of The Architectural History of Newport, Rhode Island, Harvard University Press, 1952.), architectural significance along with physical condition and originality of fabric were the guiding factors in determining which projects to support.

In the history of NRF, eight buildings originally from locations off Aquidneck Island were reassembled by NRF in Newport.  Two others – one from Middletown and one from Portsmouth (towns both located on Aquidneck Island) - were also reassembled in Newport.  The latter two, although from the same island as Newport, reflect a more rural style than the urban architecture found in the thriving seaport town of 18th century Newport.

The Swansea House originally stood in Swansea, Massachusetts.  The Newport Restoration Foundation purchased the house in 1977, disassembled it and then put it in storage.  The Swansea House was re-assembled and restored by NRF on the Cozzens Court site in 1981-82.