The Walter and Eva Burgess Farm was a historic farm at 257 Shaw Road in the rural southwestern part of

Dover-Foxcroft, Maine Dover-Foxcroft is the largest town in and the seat of Piscataquis County, Maine, United States. The population was 4,422 at the 2020 census. The town is located near the geographic center of the state. History Dover-Foxcroft was originally ...

known as Macomber Corner. The main

farmstead A homestead is an isolated dwelling, especially a farmhouse, and adjacent outbuildings, typically on a large agricultural holding such as a ranch or station. In North America the word "homestead" historically referred to land claimed by a set ...

, including a house and barn, were built in 1914 after the 19th-century farmstead was destroyed by fire. The property represented a virtually intact and well-preserved early 20th-century farmstead of rural Maine, and was stylistically distinctive because not very much new farm construction took place at that time in the state. The farm was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1997. This farmstead, including the historic house and barn, was destroyed by fire in 2013. It was removed from the National Register in 2015.

Description and history

The Burgess farm began in 1834, with the purchase of by William Burgess, who erected a log cabin on the property before eventually building a frame house. He transferred his property, a successful operation which included a small dairy herd and a flock of sheep, to his son John O. Burgess in stages between 1860 and 1877. Almost the entire farm complex was destroyed by fire on December 23, 1913, by which time the operation of the farm had been taken over by John's son Walter and his wife Eva. An ell was built onto a surviving blacksmithy to provide temporary living space for the family while a new house and barn were built. Both the house and barn built by the Burgesses included recent innovations not found in many farms in rural Maine, because agriculture was generally in decline. The barn was a large structure with a

gambrel roof A gambrel or gambrel roof is a usually symmetrical two-sided roof with two slopes on each side. (The usual architectural term in eighteenth-century England and North America was "Dutch roof".) The upper slope is positioned at a shallow angle, ...

, a western innovation that improved hay storage capacity, and the larger number of milking stations indicated that the farm was shifting to an increased emphasis in dairy production. The house was a two-story frame

foursquare Four square is a ball game. Four square may also refer to: Internet and entertainment * Foursquare City Guide, a local search and discovery app * ''4 Square'' (game show), a British game show * ''4 Square'' (TV series), a Canadian children's s ...

structure, with a hip roof. A single-story hip-roofed porch, supported by

Tuscan column The Tuscan order (Latin ''Ordo Tuscanicus'' or ''Ordo Tuscanus'', with the meaning of Etruscan order) is one of the two classical orders developed by the Romans, the other being the composite order. It is influenced by the Doric order, but with ...

s, spanned the front and wraps around to one side. The interior retained original varnished woodwork. An ell joined the house to the barn. The entire complex was engulfed by an accidental fire, probably started by sparks in the barn, and destroyed in July 2013.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Buildings and structures completed in 1914 Houses in Piscataquis County, Maine Demolished buildings and structures in Maine Farms on the National Register of Historic Places in Maine National Register of Historic Places in Piscataquis County, Maine Former National Register of Historic Places in Maine

Description and history

See also

References