Codman House
Encyclopedia
Lincoln, Massachusetts
Lincoln is a town in the historic area of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,362 at the 2010 census, including residents of Hanscom Air Force Base that live within town limits...
. Thanks to a gift by Dorothy Codman, it has been owned by Historic New England
Historic New England
Historic New England, previously known as the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities , is a charitable, non-profit, historic preservation organization headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. It is focused on New England and is the oldest and largest regional preservation...
since 1969 and is open to the public June 1–October 15 on the first and third Saturdays of the month. An admission fee
Fee
A fee is the price one pays as remuneration for services. Fees usually allow for overhead, wages, costs, and markup.Traditionally, professionals in Great Britain received a fee in contradistinction to a payment, salary, or wage, and would often use guineas rather than pounds as units of account...
is charged.
The original house was Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
and was built in approximately 1735 by Chambers Russell I. It was enlarged in the 1790s to its current three-story Federal style by John Codman, brother-in-law of Chambers Russell III and executor of his estate. This was perhaps with some involvement of noted American architect Charles Bulfinch
Charles Bulfinch
Charles Bulfinch was an early American architect, and has been regarded by many as the first native-born American to practice architecture as a profession....
. The interior is extensively furnished with portraits, memorabilia, and art works collected in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Various rooms preserve the decorative schemes of every era, including those of noted interior designer Ogden Codman, Jr.
Ogden Codman, Jr.
Ogden Codman, Jr. was a noted American architect and interior decorator in the Beaux-Arts styles, and co-author with Edith Wharton of The Decoration of Houses , which became a standard in American interior design....
The former carriage house is also located on the property. Until the 1980s, it was original to its use as a stable and an early auto garage and contained many artifacts of both. The historical association modernized the carriage house as a rental function hall in the 1980s. It is also the home to NPR's popular program "Says You!
Says You!
Says You! is an American panel radio show distributed by Pipit & Finch in the United States. Although many NPR stations carry it, it is independently produced. It was created by host Richard Sher, and is produced in Boston, Massachusetts, by Pipit & Finch...
".
The grounds have been farmed almost continuously since 1735 and now also include an Italianate garden, circa 1900, with perennial beds, statuary, and a reflecting pool
Reflecting pool
A reflecting pool or reflection pool is a water feature found in gardens, parks, and at memorial sites. It usually consists of a shallow pool of water, undisturbed by fountain jets, for a calm reflective...
filled with waterlilies, as well as an English cottage garden
Cottage garden
The cottage garden is a distinct style of garden that uses an informal design, traditional materials, dense plantings, and a mixture of ornamental and edible plants. English in origin, the cottage garden depends on grace and charm rather than grandeur and formal structure...
, circa 1930.