Isaac Sprague House

William Stickney sold a large parcel of land to Isaac Sprake (aka Sprague) in 1784, just west of the Fordway. That deed does not mention any buildings on the land. Isaac married Rhoda Wilson in 1788, so it's likely he built the house some time between 1784 and 1788. The historian Rev. Hazen reported that a special meeting took place at Isaac Sprake's house on January 23, 1789 to determine whether the Fordway Bridge should be rebuilt, so the house was certainly in existence then.

Isaac died in 1799 and Rhoda remarried to Abijah Hodgman from Carlisle. Though Rhoda appears to have moved to Carlisle, she kept ownership of the house until her death in 1818. At that point, her Sprague children sold the house to William Richardson, who sold it to the widow Judith Richardson Pollard.

In the 1830s, the house changed hands a number of times, and in 1847, it was acquired by Cyrus Ham, a machinist. He lived here until his death in 1891.

Deeds:

• 1784: 7/496 William Stickney to Isaac Sprake
• 1819: 12/146 Joseph Dows (Isaac's son-in-law) et al to William Richardson
• 1819: 13/48 William Richardson to Judith Pollard
• 1826: 13/435 Judith Pollard to William Oliver
• 1832: 16/158 William Oliver to Samuel Oliver
• 1833: 16/268 Samuel Oliver to Sereno Fiske
• 1836: 15/423 Sereno Fiske to John Brown
• 1837: 15/424 John Brown to John Mixer
• 1837: 15/498 John Mixer to Abbot Russell
• 1847: 18/349 Abbot Russell to Cyrus Ham
• 1853: Map shows C. Ham
• 1875: Map shows C. Ham
• 1889: Map shows C. Ham

This house has not been inventoried by MACRIS.