Copyright ©2009 President & Fellows Harvard University

GENERAL ARTEMAS WARD HOUSE MUSEUM
786 MAIN STREET
SHREWSBURY, MASSACHUSETTS

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the General Artemas Ward Museum was the home of the First Commander-in-Chief of the American Revolution. It stands on the Old Post Road in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, thirty-five miles west of Boston. Originally built around 1727 as a five-room salt box by the General's father, it evolved into a thirteen-room Colonial Mansion with eleven fireplaces and a double sized barn. Early architectural details remain intact. The property was owned by five generations of Wards and operated for nearly two hundred years as a working farm. The well documented collection of furniture, artifacts and farm implements reflect generations of household members and changes in daily life and agriculture. In 1925 the General's great-grandson Artemas Ward bequeathed the farm to Harvard University.

COLLECTIONS include furnishings and heirlooms that belonged to the General and his family, commissions, Ward family portraits, Colonial, Federal and Empire furniture (including grain-painted furniture and children's furniture), farm equipment, wood stoves, lighting, glass, China and textiles.

THE HOUSE contains fine original woodwork throughout including early sliding shutters, kitchen paneling, a corner cupboard and a wall that can be lifted and stored against the ceiling.

 

 Copyright © 2010 The President and Fellows of Harvard College