Benjamin Nye Homestead

The beautiful natural setting of the Benjamin Nye Homestead & Museum surrounded by several other 18th century colonial homes makes it unique. The house was built by Benjamin Nye, one of the first fifty men to settle in Sandwich. Given permission by the town to erect a mill by the stream from his pond, Benjamin Nye built one of the first grist mills in the country in 1669. Later he also built a fulling mill nearby, and his home by 1681.

Originally his house was a small peaked roof structure with a central chimney. Later when more room was needed an addition on the first floor changed the shape of that to a saltbox. The final major change was the addition of rooms on the second floor to form a full colonial as it is today.

Although the mills are no longer there, the house remains as an excellent example of early living. Now visitors who travel the ancient way once used by stage coaches and farmers can see time turned back as they view the Benjamin Nye Homestead & Museum in its peaceful surroundings.

Inside the house when one has stepped over the millstone doorstep many interesting features are revealed. The original early paneling has been uncovered and enhances several rooms. An 18th century wallpaper discovered in an upstairs bedroom has been reproduced by a Boston company and now appears on the walls of the parlor. Interior window shutters in this room allow the visitor to imagine those settlers trying to protect themselves from the cold New England winters. The braced frame construction used in only very early homes has been exposed on the second floor.

Many antiques complete the picture of life in the past with flax and spinning wheels, early cooking implements, hand woven sheets, a Revolutionary period gun, and fine antique period furniture. From the hand stencilled walls in the borning room to the tiny, scary Bugaboo Room beneath the stairs, there is something of interest for every visitor to the Benjamin Nye Homestead & Museum.

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