Historic New England: Sayward-Wheeler House

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A light blue, black, and white striped header image with the words Historic New England Sayward-Wheeler House

During my three-day trip of the Portsmouth, New Hampshire area, I visited Sayward-Wheeler House, a Historic New England (HNE) property in York, Maine. The house was owned by the Sayward-Wheeler family throughout its time as a private residence, from 1719 to 1977, and went through few updates.

Sayward-Wheeler House; a white Georgian style clapboard house behind a white picket fence across a green lawn 
Sayward-Wheeler House viewed from down a hill, with two levels of white picket fences. On an ornate metal pole, a black and blue sign with white serif test reading Sayward-Wheeler House c. 1718. On the bottom right corner is the Historic New England logo. Sayward-Wheeler House seen on a metal bridge from across the blue-green water. Behind the house is a leafy green forest. The sky is bright blue with almost no clouds.

The Sayward Family

The patriarch of the family, Joseph Sayward, bought the almost new house in 1720. Joseph was not very good with money, so his adult son Jonathan Sayward bought the house in 1735 to help him out. Jonathan moved in with his new wife, Sarah Mitchell Sayward. Unlike his father, Jonathan was a successful mariner and trader, specializing in lumber, fur, and enslaved people. He also held several political positions in the Massachusetts colonial government, as Maine was part of that colony. By 1775, he had a happy thirty-nine year marriage to Sarah. The couple had one daughter, Sarah Sayward Barrell (named after her mother), who married wealthy merchant Nathaniel Barrell. Finished portraits of Jonathan and the younger Sarah hang in the parlor. Unfortunately, their luck ran out that year. Mother Sarah died at age 54. Her unfinished painting hangs in the parlor. The Sayward family were Loyalists who supported King George III during the American Revolution. Because of his royal sympathies, Jonathan was stripped of his political positions, confined to his home in York, and lost much of his wealth. He did remarry in 1779 to Gloucester, MA resident Elizabeth Plummer and lived another eighteen years, dying in 1797. The house went to grandson Jonathan Sayward Barrell and his wife Mary Plummer Barrell, who was also the niece of Elizabeth. York was a small town.

Framed oil portrait of Sarah Sayward Barrell, a white woman wearing a royal blue late 18th century dress Framed oil portrait of Jonathan Sayward, an older white man wearing a white powdered wig and a button down brown coat with white ruffles Parlor with the two previously described portraits, plus the unfinished portrait of Sarah Sayward, a middle aged white woman wearing a gray dress and a white bonnet. The matching wooden chairs with emerald green cushions and a wooden side table sit below the portraits A floor-to-ceiling wooden writing desk with the top chopped off.

Bonento, Prince, Cato, & Dinah

Before continuing with the story of the Sayward-Barrell-Wheeler family, I must mention the enslaved people of the Sayward household. HNE focuses on "Recovering New England Voices", especially the stories of Wabanaki and Black Americans. At least four people were known to be enslaved on the property. Boneto, a possibly Wabanaki man, was bought by Joseph in 1730 but soon disappeared from the written record. Cato and Prince were enslaved by Jonathan, while Dinah worked at a nearby tavern and married Prince. All three were given common names, so their lives are difficult to track. In 1783, Prince gained his freedom by serving in the Continental Army, while Cato bought his freedom.

Ornate metal light fixture with reddish-orange stained glass A white, porcelain, 19th century claw foot tub in front of a yellow wall A green vase on top of a small rug on top of a round, wooden table Georgian style window with white indoor shutters Five framed prints plus a pair of silhouettes above the fireplace A pair of framed paintings depicting Sayward-Wheeler House

Barrell Family

The Barrell parents, Jonathan and Mary, had eight children. Between many mouths to feed and the disastrous Jefferson Embargo of 1807, which destroyed the livelihoods of most merchant families in northern New England (see other HNE properties such as: Hamilton House of South Berwick, ME; Castle Tucker and Nickels-Sortwell House of Wiscasset, ME) money was in short supply. The family could not afford to renovate the house. Yet even with limited resources, when Mary died in 1814, Jonathan could afford to marry her sister, Anna Plummer Barrell. York was a very small town.

Jonathan was acquainted with the wealthy Lyman family, owners of the HNE property Lyman Estate in Waltham, MA. In 1822, Jonathan mortgaged the house to Theodore Lyman and sold the furniture to daughter Elizabeth Barrell (perhaps named for her great aunt Elizabeth, the second wife of the first Jonathan). Another one of his daughters, Mary Barrell (named for her mother), helped her to take care of the house after the death of their stepmother Anna in 1826. Their brother Joseph Barrell (perhaps named for great-great-grandfather who first bought the house) gave them the deed in 1841. The sisters loved inviting visitors to tour the house and kept an inventory of everything in it. After their deaths, their only nephew George Octavius Barrell inherited the property.

A pair of wooden beds with matching orange comforters in a small bedroom. A pair of wooden beds with matching light blue comforters in a larger bedroom China cabinet with a portrait of George Washington

Wheeler Family

At this point, a different branch of the Jonathan Sayward family took interest in the house. Elizabeth Bancroft Cheever Wheeler, who wins the prize for longest name, bought the property in 1900. How is she related to the other owners? This was not given in detail on the tour, and despite some research on Find a Grave, I could not figure out the connection, although I did find that she is buried in Rural Cemetery in Worcester. In any case, this Elizabeth bequeathed the house to her four children, who in turn, donated the property with all its furniture and documentation to HNE in 1977. My favorite donated furniture was the floor-to-ceiling writing desk with its top chopped off to fit into the room. With little restoration needed, the house opened as a museum the next year.

Parlor fireplace with black mantel and several framed prints above the mantel Tall clock with metal face and reddish wood missing its top finial to fit into the space. Barometer hung on a wall with yellow, green, blue, and pink floral wallpaper

Conclusion

Sayward-Wheeler House is a charming property and a typical example of a Georgian home for upper middle class merchant families in northern New England. This may seem specific, but as someone who has gone on more than thirty house tours within the past year, I assure you that this a fairly standard home. This expertise was evidently noticeable on the tour, as the guide soon realized I was an historian and frequently asked me for additional information throughout the tour.

The tour is standard HNE small house pricing: $10 for adults, $9 for senior, $5 for children and students with ID, free for members. Tours take place on the hour, 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., first and third Saturdays from opening day in June to closing day in October. Locals mentioned that the house is rarely open, but cars are plentiful when tours are in progress. Carefully park on the lawn in front of the house. Like most other historic house tours, the property is not wheelchair accessible and has steep steps. No virtual tour is available for the house at this time.


Abby Epplett’s Rating System

Experience: 7/10

Accessibility: 5/10



Location: 9 Barrell Ln Ext, York Harbor, ME 03911, USA