Historic New England: Eleazer Arnold House & Clemence-Irons House

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I visited Eleazer Arnold House and Clemence-Irons House on the same day, as they are very similar houses! Both are stone-enders, a 17th century style located in Northern Rhode Island. These houses earned their name from their distinct “stone end”, a side of the house completely covered by a massive limestone chimney. Inside the house, three fireplaces over two floors connect to that same chimney.

Although similar in design, visitors to Arnold House and Clemence-Irons House can immediately tell them apart. Arnold House was referred to as a “Splendid Mansion”, although it pales in comparison to modern houses, while Clemence-Irons was a standard, upper middle class family home in its day. Although the buildings appear authentic, historians and architects do not know if the houses appeared exactly this way closer to the time of their construction. Both houses underwent extensive renovation in the past three hundred years and more. Their current state reflects the research of multiple generations of restorationists.

Standard blue-and-black Historic New England sign with its logo in the lower right corner. The sign reads "Arnold House, 1693". A two-story plus loft, late 17th century New England house made of wood with wooden shingles Standard blue-and-black Historic New England sign with its logo in the lower right corner. The sign reads "Clemence-Irons House, 1691". A single story plus loft, late 17th century New England house made of wood with wooden shingles

Early History

Arnold House

Built around 1693 by Eleazer Arnold, this building served as a “Publick House” or licensed tavern on the ground floor and family living space on the second floor and attic. The house’s location along the historic Great Road made it an ideal location for travelers to stop for a bite to eat. The Arnold family became so well-known in Rhode Island that this part of the road was sometimes called “Arnoldia”.

You may notice that the plaque in front of the house lists 1687 as the date when the house was built, the same year that Arnold bought the property. However, a recent dendrochronology study, or analyzing the tree rings found in the wood, proved that construction of the wooden portion began at least six years later. Future studies may push the construction date to even later.

A plaque embedded in a rock reading in part "SPLENDID MANSION OF ELEAZER ARNOLD BUILT 1687" A plain, wooden, batten board front door with a small metal knocker. One stone step leads to the door. A window with diamond shaped pains is left of the door. A wooden closet between a steep flight of wooden stairs and a massive fireplace. A massive stone fireplace, with large stones hearth stones. A wooden box with a removable lid and a cutaway on the front. A rusty, early 20th century doorbell nailed to a wooden wall A sparse room with wooden floors, a wooden wall, and a brick chimney. Two posters are propped against the wall in the corner. The space is lit by a wide window with diamond-shaped glass. A sparse attic space with wooden floors, wooden ceiling beams, and a limestone chimney. Names of past painters are whitewashed onto the beams. A late 17th century New England stone-ender house stands in the middle of the image, with its limestone chimney facing the viewer. The house is surrounded by a grass lawn. The road is close to the house on the right. A large tree dominates the left side of the image. 
A window with diamond-shaped glass panes divided into three major sections. The middle section can swing open. 

Clemence-Irons House

While a single family lived in Arnold House, many families lived in Clemence-Irons House. In 1654, eight acres of land including the location of the house was purchased by Thomas Clemence. For many years, historians believed Thomas built his house on the property right after the purchase. However, Thomas was too busy buying up other land from local Native Americans to build the house.

By the time Thomas left his property to his son, Richard Clemence, in 1681, he had amassed around 110 acres. Richard built a version of the current Elizabethan style house around 1691. The style is also known as English Tudor cottage, because Queen Elizabeth I was the last monarch in the Tudor dynasty. Like his father, Richard was a land collector and tripled the size of the property by his death in 1723.

Viewed from the inside of the sparse attic, wooden beams form a triangle supporting a cedar shingled roof. A three-quarters view of a late 17th century wooden stone-ender house and nearby wooden well. A small wooden late 17th century style chair for a toddler White plaster vertical marks on horizontal wooden beams supporting a wooden wall A wooden door to a closet between a set of narrow stairs on the left and a large fireplace on the right A large, limestone fireplace with a rusty metal pot in the center A view of a ceiling in an attic, with cedar shingles creating the roof A little wooden shed half-hidden by trees and in the shade.

Past Residents

Arnold House

Arnold and his wife, Eleanor Smith, had ten children, so their house would have been crowded. The house stayed in the Arnold family for over three hundred years, until 1918, when it was gifted to the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities, which became Historic New England. In its later years as a residence, the house was inhabited primarily by women. Another fun fact is that the street across from the house, Preserved Arnold Court, is not named for the preserved house but for a wealthy family member whose first name was Preserved.

The tour guide at this site emphasized the importance of remembering the history of the land prior to the construction of Arnold House. Nearby Lincoln Woods, also called Quinsnicket, was a valuable hunting area for Nipmuc Native Americans. The caves in the area have since been filled in and covered by a manmade pond.

The side of a limestone chimney with broken stone creating a shelf-like space A dark stained wooden floor is interrupted down the middle by a pale, unstained line A wooden beam nailed at an angle above a larger wooden beam supports the wooden roof A red brick chimney in a wooden attic A long, vertical lead paned window with diamond shaped glass panes An enormous limestone fireplace with giant hearthstones in a wooden room

Clemence-Irons House

Unlike Arnold House, many families lived at Clemence-Irons House. Richard’s son Thomas, named for his grandfather, sold the property to the Angell family in 1740, who treated the building as a rental property. The house stayed in the family until 1826, when it was sold to Steven Sweet. His granddaughter, Ellen Irons, was the last owner of the house. Throughout her life, the building was used as a boarding house open to anyone who wished to stay there. One resident was foster child Wilhelmina Peppers, who was raised by Ellen for the first seven years of her life.

Unfortunately, Ellen had no means of supporting herself other than the boarding house. She sold all of the property except for the small piece of land associated with the house. Although beloved by her community, Ellen died in debt, and the house was sold to repay them. Fortunately, the wealthy Sharpe siblings, who were interested in New England history, purchased the house with the intent of restoring to its original form.

A vertical, rectangular lead-paned window with clear, diamond-shaped glass panes A late 17th century wood batten door A cedar-shingled roof supported by wooden beams, and a wide lead-paned window on the right wall

Restorations

Arnold House

The house has undergone two major restorations to return the building to its early 18th century design. The first renovation took place around 1920, a few years after the property was donated to HNE. Rhode Island architect and restorationist Norman M. Isham led the project, which served to stabilize the building. Thirty years later, a 1950 restoration resulted in the removal of all additions of the house, including the replacement of Federalist style doors and windows with battenboard doors and leaded glass panes.

The reproduction panes of glass are just over a decade old and were constructed using the same technique as in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. The chemical composition of the glass includes the element manganese, which turns the glass yellow or purple when exposed to sunlight.

Croade Tavern, a bright red building behind Arnold House, was originally built around 1700 in modern day Pawtucket, RI. At the time, this area was known as the Jenks Settlement. Croade Tavern was moved to this site in 1918, right after Arnold House was gifted to the Society. The house is currently rented out by HNE.

A red painted mid 18th century colonial style single story building

Clemence-Irons House

Just like at Arnold House, Norman Ishman led the restoration the building along with architectural historian John Hutchins Cady. They tore off the two hundred years worth of additions and did their best to exactly recreate details like wood paneling, so visitors could not tell the difference between old and new architecture. Oddly, Ishman and Cady took creative license when it came to historical furniture reproduction, including a child’s chair and bedframes that would have fit better in a later period.

The Sharpe siblings opened up the restored house as a museum and led tours until 1947, when they donated the building to HNE. Since then, further restoration has followed different rule, as tour guides now point out clues that the building as been restored. This includes nail marks in the main beams and plaster on the walls where wallpaper was hung in the 19th century.

Looks straight up at a limestone chimney from inside a wooden attic A hole in a limestone wall, the right size for a two-by-four Near the staircase in an attic, a banister has decorative balusters in a late 19th century style A mid 17th century bedframe in a wooden room Another view of wooden beams and cedar shingles inside a wooden attic Side view of a 17th century stone ender, with the wall-length limestone chimney

Conclusion

Arnold House and Clemence-Irons House are open on Sundays, June through early October. Arnold House has tours on the hour from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., while Clemence-Irons House has tour on the hour from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Tours at each house cost $10 for adults, $9 for seniors, and $5 for students.

Between the step up to the entranceways, narrow staircase, and low lighting, these properties are not accessible to those with mobility issues, in a wheelchair, or with a visual impairment. At Arnold House, I met a legally blind older visitor who wanted to take a tour but felt unable to navigate the space.

In contrast, these houses are a great spot to take children, including school group, scouting groups, or church groups. The lack of original furniture combined with the availability of open space both in and around the building enables small groups to safely explore the area. Younger children may need assistance navigating the stairs.


Abby Epplett’s Rating System

Experience: 8/10

Accessibility: 3/10


Location: 38 George Waterman Rd, Johnston, RI 02919, USA