Captain John Stearns House
Captain John Stearns House
| Also Known As | Moses P. Greenwood House |
| Address | 96 Dudley Rd |
| MACRIS ID | BIL.185 |
| Built | 1689 |
The Captain John Stearns House is the oldest dwelling in the Two Brothers Rocks-Dudley Road Historic District, a center-chimney farmhouse facing south toward Mill Brook in the south-west corner of Billerica, near the Bedford line and the Concord River. In more than three hundred years the farm has passed through only two families, the Stearnses and the Greenwoods, which the Historical Commission called "a conservative tradition, which has made it possible to retain much of the 'colonial' character of the house itself." The deeds and probate records trace that ownership link by link.
The land was part of the Dudley Farm. In 1665 James Parker of Groton sold John Stearns of Billerica several parcels "a part of the farme purchased of Thomas Dudly," including about fifty acres "on the west end of the farme" running to "the river" and another fifty acres between Winthrop's farm and Crooked Meadow, with meadow lots along the Concord. John Stearns died in March 1669, leaving a "dwelling house, barne, orchard, uplands, meadows." His son, Capt. John Stearns (1654-1728), settled on this land at the south-west corner of the farm, where he started the saw-mill long operated on Mill Brook. Family tradition says he built this house in 1689, the year his sixth child was born. He served in the relief of Dunstable in 1706, was a selectman at intervals from 1689 to 1720, and was town clerk in 1703-1704. In February 1728, shortly before his death, he gave his son John "the place or scituation That I now Dwell upon," about 250 acres bounded west by the Concord River and north by Ralph Hill, "with all The Buildings," keeping it for his own life.
His son Lt. John Stearns (1686-1776), a representative to the General Court, kept the house and the mill. In 1752 he gave his son Isaac Stearns one hundred acres running from the brook "down to Concord River," "together with all the building thereon but not to be in the possession but of one half part of the premises until after my decease," keeping the right "to pass and repass to the saw mill," to dig "in the old gravel pits," and to flood the meadow at the usual times. The house may have begun as a half-house and been enlarged to its present five bays for the two families. Isaac Stearns (1722-1808), whose papers are at the Massachusetts Historical Society, lived here until his death; his will left "one half of all my Land & Buildings in Billerica" to his son Timothy and the other half, the neighboring farm at 77 Dudley Road, to his son John. Timothy Stearns died in 1816 with a farm of about 106 acres, cranberries among its crops, and left "the farm whereon I now live" to his sons Sewall and Obed, with a third for his widow's life. In 1824 Obed quitclaimed his share, "one hundred acres ... with the buildings thereon, bounded westerly on Concord river," to Sewall Stearns, a justice of the peace and ten times a selectman, who lived here until his death in 1849. His inventory lists "The Homestead Farm ... about ninety six acres, with the buildings."
In April 1850 Sewall Stearns's widow Lucretia and the other heirs sold the homestead, "with the buildings thereon containing about eighty acres," running west to the Concord River, to Moses P. Greenwood for $3,500. Greenwood and his son George P. Greenwood built up a dairy farm of about ninety acres, and by 1891 "Greenwood's Grove" on the river was a picnic ground, later a colony of summer cottages. After George's death in 1921 the farm was held under his will, and his son Laurence J. Greenwood turned it to market gardening; in 1966 the surviving trustee and the executrices of his brother Oliver's estate conveyed the house and farm to Laurence, who still lived here in 1973. After his wife's death the family divided the farm, and in 1978 the house was sold with 11.3 acres on Dudley Road; it has been privately owned since, and the house and its barn became part of the Two Brothers Rocks-Dudley Road Historic District, listed on the National Register in 2010.
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Title References
| Date | Type | Grantor | Grantee | Summary | Recorded |
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| 1665 | Deed | James Parker of Groton and Elizabeth Parker | John Stearns of Billerica | Parker sells the south-west Dudley Farm lots to John Stearns | 4/134 (South) |
Dated Nov. 24, 1665 (recorded 1670). For a valuable sum, James Parker of Groton sells John Sternes of Billerica sundry parcels, "a part of the farme purchased of Thomas Dudly Esqr decd": about fifty acres bounded north by the township line; about fifty acres "on the west end of the farme" bounded southeast by George Farley, south by land bought of Ralph Hill Jr., north by Elder Champney and northwest "the river"; about fifty acres bounded southwest by Mr. Winthrops farm, northwest by the river and east by Crooked Meadow; with meadow lots in Crooked Meadow, Long Meadow, River Meadow and Pond Meadow. These river lots at the south-west corner of the Dudley Farm are the ground of the Stearns homestead. Billerica town book 1, pages 54-56.
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| 1669 | Inventory | Estate of John Stearns of Billerica (died Mar. 5, 1668/9) | His widow Sarah and his children, among them his eldest son John (the later Capt. John Stearns) | Inventory of the first John Stearns | Probate #21259 |
Inventory taken later in March 1669 after John Stearnss death on Mar. 5, 1668/9: "dwelling house, barne, orchard, uplands, meadows" and the lands bought of Parker, in all about 390 pounds. No will or division survives in the file; his son John, then about fifteen, afterward settled on his fathers land at the south-west corner of the Dudley Farm. Papers read, pages 1-2.
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| January 21, 1729 | Deed of Gift | Capt. John Stearns of Billerica and Joanna Stearns | Lt. John Stearns of Billerica, his son | Capt. John Stearns gives his dwelling place to his son John | 29/200 (South) |
Dated and acknowledged Feb. 21, 1727/8, recorded Jan. 21, 1728/9. For love, Capt. John Stearns gives his son John "one Messuage or tract of Land and medow ... Being The place or scituation That I now Dwell upon Containing about two Hundred and Fifty acres," bounded south by Matthew Whipple, west by the Concord River, north by Ralph Hill and east by the meadow and Nathaniel Hill, "with all The Buildings fences and Trees Thereon," the son "not to be in ye possession of the same untill after my Decease." Witnesses Samuel Hill and Samuel Barron. Capt. Stearns died later in 1728. Billerica town book 3, pages 205-206.
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| July 21, 1760 | Deed of Gift | John Stearns Sr. (Lt. John Stearns) | Isaac Stearns | Homestead, 100 acres with the buildings, given by Lt. John Stearns to his son Isaac | 58/72 (South) |
John Stearns of Billerica, "Senior," "for and in consideration of the love good will and affection" he bore his son Isaac Stearns of Billerica, husbandman, gave him "a certain tract or parcel of plowland mowing land and pasture land lying in Billerica ... containing one hundred acres," beginning by Samuel Stearns's land "where the brook runs into my land," bounding southerly on the brook "down to Concord River," then down the river to the meadow of Jonathan Hill and back by Hill's meadow and marked bounds over the brook, "together with all the building thereon but not to be in the possession but of one half part of the premises until after my decease and then in the whole," reserving liberty "to pass and repass to the saw mill," for carrying hay or wood, "for digging gravel in the old gravel pits," and "flowing of the meadow land at the usual times." Dated March 20, 1752; acknowledged March 21, 1752; recorded July 21, 1760. Billerica town book 5, pages 496-497.
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| 1808 | Will | Hon. Isaac Stearns of Billerica | Timothy Stearns and John Stearns, his sons (each one half of his Billerica lands and buildings) | Isaac Stearns wills half his Billerica land (the homestead) to Timothy | Probate #21251 |
Will dated Oct. 1, 1800, lodged Apr. 13, 1808, proved June 14, 1808. Besides provision for his widow Sarah and legacies to his other children, Isaac Stearns gives "to my son Timothy Stearns ... one half of all my Land & Buildings in Billerica, including the lands mentioned in a Deed already given him," and the other half, "including what he already has a Deed of," to his son John; Timothy and John are executors. Timothys half was the homestead now at 96 Dudley Road, Johns the farm at 77 Dudley Road. Papers read, pages 2-5.
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| 1816 | Will | Timothy Stearns of Billerica, gentleman | Sewall Stearns and Obed Stearns, his sons (residue, including the homestead); Sarah Stearns, widow (use of one third) | Timothy Stearns wills the homestead to Sewall and Obed | Probate #21346 |
Will dated Jan. 29, 1816, accepted by the widow Aug. 28, 1816. Timothy Stearns gives his wife "the use of one third part of my homestead, or the farm whereon I now live, including my woodlot in the Town of Carlisle," for her life, the Ashburnham pasture to his sons Eckley and Timothy, $250 to his daughter Sarah Abbot Stearns, and "all the rest, residue and remainder of my estate both real and personal" to his sons Sewall and Obed, the widows third to descend to them after her death. Executors Elijah Stearns of Bedford and Sewall Stearns. Papers read, pages 2-5.
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| April 24, 1824 | Quitclaim | Obed Stearns of Billerica, yeoman | Sewall Stearns of Billerica, his brother | Obed Stearns quitclaims his half to Sewall | 253/467 (South) |
Dated and acknowledged Apr. 2, 1824, recorded Apr. 24, 1824. For $1,650, all Obeds right in "one hundred acres of land more or less lying partly in Bedford and partly in Billerica aforesaid with the buildings thereon, bounded westerly on Concord river northerly by land of John Stearns easterly by land of Zebadiah Rogers a crooked line and southerly by lands of Simeon Stearns James Vila and Abner Stearns a crooked line," with sixty acres of pasture in Ashburnham and woodlots in Carlisle, "meaning hereby to convey to said Sewall all the real estate which I now own in said Billerica, Bedford, Ashburnham and Carlisle." Witnesses Elijah Stearns and Jonas Munroe Jr. Recorded in the Carlisle series, town book 8, pages 590-592.
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| 1849 | Administration | Estate of Sewall Stearns, Esq., of Billerica, intestate | Obed Stearns of Bedford, administrator; the widow Lucretia and the heirs | Sewall Stearns estate: the homestead farm of 96 acres | Probate #42248 |
Sewall Stearns died intestate in 1849; at the request of his widow Lucretia, his brother Obed Stearns was appointed administrator Nov. 20, 1849. The inventory of Nov. 23, 1849 values "The Homestead Farm of said deceased situate in said Billerica and Carlisle containing about ninety six acres, with the buildings on the same" at $4,900, with woodlots, a sixty acre Ashburnham pasture and pews, and a large personal estate including hay, grain, potatoes, apples, cider, vinegar and cranberries. Papers read, pages 2-5 and 8-11.
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| April 27, 1850 | Quitclaim | Lucretia Stearns, widow; Obed Stearns; Eckley Stearns; Aaron and Sarah A. Lawrence; Timothy Stearns; heirs of Sewall Stearns | Moses P. Greenwood | Sewall Stearns homestead sold by his heirs to Moses P. Greenwood | 579/466 (South) |
Dated Apr. 15, 1850, acknowledged Apr. 22-24 and recorded Apr. 27, 1850. Lucretia Stearns of Billerica, widow, Obed Stearns of Bedford, gentleman, Eckley Stearns of Abington, yeoman, Aaron Lawrence, trader, and Sarah A. Lawrence his wife of Amherst, New Hampshire, and Timothy Stearns of Pickaway County, Ohio, clerk, "heirs at law of the estate of Sewall Stearns Esquire late of said Billerica deceased," for $3,500 quitclaimed to Moses P. Greenwood of Billerica, yeoman, "a certain tract or parcel of land situated in the southwest part of said Billerica and with the buildings thereon containing about eighty acres," beginning at the north-east corner by Jonathan Hill, west by Franklin Stearns to the Concord River, south by the river to John C. Hobbs, east and south by Hobbs to Thomas G. Atkins, east by Atkins and William H. Ropes to Franklin Stearns, and north by Stearns and Hutchinson Rogers, with eight and four acre lots in Carlisle. The wives of Obed, Eckley and Timothy released dower. Billerica town book 21, pages 41-43.
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| June 23, 1966 | Trustees and Executrices Deed | Laurence J. Greenwood, surviving trustee under the will of George P. Greenwood; Alice B. Sandberg and Lois E. Fayton, co-executrices of the will of Oliver P. Greenwood | Laurence J. Greenwood of Billerica | Greenwood trustees convey the farm to Laurence J. Greenwood | 1756/273 |
Dated June 22, 1966, recorded June 23, 1966. The Greenwood family trust and Oliver P. Greenwoods estate convey to Laurence J. Greenwood "a certain parcel of land with the buildings thereon situated in the southerly part of said Billerica," the eighty acres from Jonathan Hills corner west by Franklin Stearns "to the Concord River," south by the river to John C. Hobbs and back by Atkins, Ropes, Stearns and Hutchinson Rogers, "being the parcel first described in a certain deed from Lucretia Stearns et al to Moses P. Greenwood ... dated April 15, 1850 ... Book 579, Page 466," with eighteen acres on the road from Chelmsford to Bedford, excepting about six acres between the "Harrison Farm" and "Greenwood Grove" given by Article Fourth of George P. Greenwoods will. "For our respective rights, titles and interests see Estate of George P. Greenwood ... #134588." Subject to a Lowell Five Cent Savings Bank mortgage.
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| February 9, 1967 | Quitclaim | Laurence J. Greenwood | Laurence J. Greenwood and Mildred B. Greenwood | Greenwood farm; 1978 house lot of 11.3 acres sold out of the family | 1784/569 |
Laurence J. Greenwood of Billerica conveyed to himself and his wife Mildred, as tenants by the entirety, "a certain parcel of land with the buildings thereon situated in the southerly part of said Billerica," from Jonathan Hill's land west by Franklin Stearns "to the Concord River," south by the river to John C. Hobbs, and back by Atkins, Ropes, Stearns and Hutchinson Rogers, "containing about 80 acres and being the parcel first described in a certain deed from Lucretia Stearns et al to Moses P. Greenwood ... dated April 15, 1850," with an 18 acre lot on the road from Chelmsford to Bedford, excepting about 6 acres between the "Harrison Farm" and "Greenwood Grove" left by Article Fourth of the will of George P. Greenwood; being the premises conveyed to him by himself as surviving trustee under the will of George P. Greenwood and by the executrices of Oliver P. Greenwood in 1966 (Book 1756 Page 273). After Mildred Greenwood's death her estate sold the house, "a certain parcel of land, with the buildings thereon," 11.30 acres on Dudley Road shown on a September 1978 subdivision plan (Plan Book 127 Plan 72), to private owners for $55,000 (Book 2330 Page 391), keeping the right to draw water "from the well next to the garage." The rest of the farm was divided among the Greenwood heirs. The house lot has remained in private hands (Book 7235 Page 26, 1994; Book 17815 Page 171, 2004).
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Recorded is Book/Page at the Middlesex North Registry of Deeds unless noted; Probate # is a Middlesex probate case, Ctf a Land Court certificate of title.