Oliver Farmer House
Oliver Farmer House
| Address | 336 Boston Rd |
| MACRIS ID | BIL.158 |
| Built | 1760 |
| Owners | Oliver Farmer (None - 1798) |
The Oliver Farmer House is a fine colonial farmhouse on the east side of Boston Road, south of the Town Center. It was the home of Oliver Farmer (1728-1814) in 1789, when a deed names it as an abutter, and he very probably built it, perhaps about the time of his marriage in 1757. His brother Edward lived farther north, at the corner of Pollard and Floyd Streets, in what was probably an older Farmer house. As far as is known it is the oldest Farmer house still standing. The "Farmer garrison house" that Hazen mentions was the next house to the south; it was not a garrison, and it belonged to Thomas Dutton and later Timothy Foster. The genealogist John Farmer (1789-1838), author of the "Historical Memoir of Billerica" (1816), was Oliver's grandson.
Oliver Farmer passed the homestead to his son Jeremiah in two deeds. On Jan. 11, 1796 he gave him half of "my homestead containing fifty acres more or less with a dwelling house and barn thereon," bounded west on the county road from Chelmsford to Boston, south on Timothy Foster and Solomon Pollard, east on William Patten and north on Edward Farmer, with land across the road running down to the Concord River. On June 11, 1798 he conveyed "the other half of all my lands and buildings," the first piece being "that whereon my buildings stand lying easterly of the county road." Neither deed was recorded until March 1835. Jeremiah married Clarissa Foster, the daughter of his next-door neighbor.
Jeremiah Farmer died early in 1836 without a will, leaving two minor children, Sarah C. and Timothy F. Farmer. His debts were larger than his personal estate, and in November 1836 the Probate Court licensed his widow Clarissa, as administratrix, to sell the homestead, about 44 acres "with the buildings thereon," appraised at $2,300. On March 20, 1837 she sold it at public auction on the premises to Seth Crosby, the highest bidder, for $1,450, and in 1841 Crosby sold "the Homestead of Jeremiah Farmer deceased" to Bill Russell for $1,700. Clarissa and her son seem to have moved to the Foster place next door. The 1853 map shows the house as T. Farrier's and the 1875 map as F. Dixon's. It remains a private home.
References
Title References
| Date | Type | Grantor | Grantee | Summary | Recorded |
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| March 5, 1835 | Warranty (undivided half) | Oliver Farmer of Billerica, yeoman | Jeremiah Farmer of Billerica, yeoman, his son | Oliver Farmer gives his son Jeremiah half the homestead with the dwelling house and barn | 339/70 (South) |
For $200 "and for love good will & affection which I bear my son Jeremiah Farmer," "the one half both in quantity and quality of all the after described land and buildings": "First my homestead containing fifty acres more or less with a dwelling house and barn thereon bounding westerly on the county road leading from Chelmsford to Boston southerly on Timothy Fosters land and Solomon Pollards easterly on land of William Patten and northerly on Edward Farmer Esquires land to the road first mentioned"; second, twelve and a half acres on the west side of the road by John Shed, the Concord River and Isaac Wilkins; third, three acres on Fox Hill by the Rangeway, Josiah Bowers and Benjamin Davis; and fourth, ten acres "westerly of the said road and of the dwelling house" by John Shed, the Concord River and Edward Farmer. Dated and acknowledged Jan. 11, 1796 before Isaac Stearns; recorded March 5, 1835. Billerica town book 15, pages 64-65 (Southern Registry Book 339 Page 70).
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| March 5, 1835 | Warranty (undivided half) | Oliver Farmer of Billerica, yeoman | Jeremiah Farmer of Billerica, yeoman, his son | Oliver Farmer conveys the other half, "whereon my buildings stand," to Jeremiah | 339/72 (South) |
For $350 "and for love good will and affection which I bear to him as a son," "the one half or the other half of all my lands and buildings lying in said Billerica I having given him a deed of one moiety or half heretofore. The first piece is that whereon my buildings stand lying easterly of the county road," bounded westerly on the road, northerly on Edward Farmer Esq., easterly on William Patten and southerly on Capt. Solomon Pollard and Timothy Foster; with the land west of the road to the Concord River by Edward Farmer and Zacheus Shed, three acres on Fox Hill and ten acres by Shed and Isaac Wilkins. Dated and acknowledged June 11, 1798, witnesses Timothy Foster and Isaac Stearns; recorded March 5, 1835. Billerica town book 15, pages 65-67 (Southern Registry Book 339 Page 72).
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| 1836 | Estate administration (license to sell) | Jeremiah Farmer of Billerica, yeoman, deceased intestate | Clarissa Farmer, widow and administratrix, for Sarah C. and Timothy F. Farmer, minor children and only heirs | Estate of Jeremiah Farmer: license to sell the homestead | Probate #7187 |
Middlesex probate case 7187, 16 pages (pages 2-5 read). Clarissa Farmer gave notice of her appointment as administratrix on April 12, 1836. Debts, including a $1,000 bond to the Trustees of Phillips Academy, the widow's allowance and charges came to $1,533.63 against personal estate of about $250, while the real estate was valued at $3,440, "consisting of the Homestead of said deceased containing about forty four acres with the buildings thereon, also a lot of 13 1/2 acres called the widow's thirds lot," a Fox Hill lot, a plain field lot and a wood lot in Chelmsford. Because a partial sale would injure the rest, she asked to sell the whole homestead (appraised at $2,300) and the widow's thirds lot (appraised at $600), with the consent of her children Sarah C. and Timothy F. Farmer; the court granted the license on Nov. 15, 1836.
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| March 18, 1841 | Administratrix's Deed | Clarissa Farmer of Billerica, widow and administratrix of the estate of Jeremiah Farmer | Seth Crosby of Billerica, yeoman | Widow sells the homestead at auction to Seth Crosby; Crosby to Bill Russell 1841 | 401/542 (South) |
Under the Probate Court's license of Nov. 15, 1836, after thirty days' notice posted in Billerica, Tewksbury and Wilmington, sold "at Public Vendue in the premises" on March 20, 1837 to Crosby, the highest bidder, for $1,450: "The Homestead of said deceased situated in said Billerica containing fifty acres more or less with the Buildings thereon standing and bounded as follows viz. Westerly on the County Road leading from said Billerica to Lowell Southerly on Land of the Widow Sarah Foster and Land of Thomas Holden Easterly on Land of Josiah Stevens northerly on Land of said Stevens to the Road first mentioned." Dated March 20, 1837, acknowledged Oct. 12, 1837 before Marshall Preston, recorded March 18, 1841. Billerica town book 17, pages 81-82 (Southern Registry Book 401 Page 542). In 1841 Crosby quitclaimed the same "late the Homestead of Jeremiah Farmer deceased" to Bill Russell Esq. of Billerica for $1,700 (town book 17/83, S. 401/544). How it passed to T. Farrier (1853 map) was not found.
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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.