Miscellany Mondays: A painting with a story to tell

The Goldsmith-Caldwell Estate

Every once in a while I decide to take a break from digging into history and just enjoy a lovely piece of artwork from the History Center’s collection. This oil painting of the Goldsmith-Caldwell House hangs in one of our offices, so we get to see it everyday.

I thought it would be a quick and easy story, but as it turns out, this lovely painting has an important story to tell.

EDITORIAL NOTE: After this post was emailed to subscribers, historian Jim Batchelder shared new information in a comment.

Goldsmith-Caldwell House, artist and date of creation are unknown. ACHC #1941.008.1. The name Goldsmith is a familiar one in Andover. A few generations after the house was built, William G. Goldsmith would become the principal of Punchard Free School. His daughter Bessie Goldsmith was a town historian, who among many other things, wrote a local history column for the Andover Townsman newspaper.

The house depicted in the painting was built by William Goldsmith (1725-1812) for his second wife, Hannah Burnham Goldsmith (1734-1834) and their growing family. William and Hannah were originally from Ipswich, Massachusetts. They relocated to Andover in 1765 or 1772 when they built the house.

The house, which burned to the ground between 1891 and 1915, was likely¹ at the corner of what is now South Main St. and Alderbrook Road.

William had six children with his first wife, Margaret Cogswell Goldsmith, who died February 24, 1754. As was typical of the time, William wasted no time in finding and marrying his second wife. He married Hannah Burnham July 4, 1754, less than five months after the death of his first wife.

Together William and Hannah would have another eight children, bringing the total number of children to 14.

In a 1945 genealogy,² Bessie Goldsmith wrote about the many children and the size of the new house in Andover,

“There were six children from the first marriage and eight by the second so the house in Andover…had to be large. Some of the children by the first marriage were married and were only visitors with their children. William, at that time, owned about 1,000 acres in Andover...and the house was modeled after the Burnham home in Ipswich.”

It’s a very bucolic picture, until one reads this in Bessie’s genealogy,

“Hannah Burnham had a good dowry, including 25 African slaves.”

She went on,

“William was a cattle drover, traveling about the country to buy cattle which were slaughtered and salted for crews of whaling vessels sailing out of Gloucester...Hannah stayed at home and farmed the home place with the assistance of the slaves who lived in cabins across the road (Rattlesnake Hill Road) and are buried in the vicinity.”

Looking through records assembled by Andover historian Joan Patrakis³ and research conducted by Ed Bell for his book, Persistence of Memories of Slavery and Emancipation in Historical Andover,⁴ I couldn’t find evidence of 25 enslaved people being brought to Andover between 1765 and 1772. In 1765, the population of Andover was just 2,400 people.⁵ 25 people would have been a substantial increase.

That we can’t document the presence of 25 enslaved people doesn’t mean they weren’t here. It is instead greater evidence of how little we know about the lives of enslaved and free black people who lived in Andover in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Massachusetts abolished slavery in 1783. So some of the names of free black residents that appear in records and research could be those who were formerly enslaved by the Goldsmith family.

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Hannah Goldsmith lived until 1837, when she died at age 87. In her genealogy, Bessie noted that “There is a tradition that Hannah Burnham Goldsmith walked to Boston when she was over 90 years of age.” Tradition might be off by a few years, but it could be true. Before trains, trolleys, and cars, people frequently walked long distances. The 25 miles from Andover to Boston is not out of the realm of possibility, even for an older woman.

The Goldsmith house didn’t change hands out of the family until 1853 when it was sold to Rufus Caldwell. By then the original 1,000 acre farm had been reduced to 75 acres. Caldwell sold the property to Brooks Holt in 1891. Bessie wrote, “It was during his ownership that it was burned to the ground.”

EDITORIAL NOTE: From historian Jim Batchelder, the house burned in 1886, not 1891 as Bessie recorded.⁶

The painting was donated to the History Center by the estate of Mrs. Mattie A. Caldwell in 1941. It’s likely that it was painted when the Caldwells lived in the house, between 1853 and 1886.

It looks like the weather we’ve been having in New England lately.

Thanks for reading. Please like, share, comment, and subscribe to support the research that makes History Buzz possible.
~Elaine

1. See Note 6 from Jim Batchelder.

2. Goldsmith-Caldwell House by Bessie P. Goldsmith, 1945, from the research files of the Andover Center for History and Culture.

3. Joan Patrakis’ compiled research into records of People of Color who lived in Andover 1765-1865 will be available at the History Center later this year.

4. Edward L. Bell, Persistence of Memories of Slavery and Emancipation in Historical Andover, Shawsheen Press, Boston, Massachusetts, 2021. Copies of the book are available by mail for $55 (s/h included). Email shawsheenpress@gmail.com for details.

5. https://answers.mhl.org/Andover_-_Population

6. Comment from Jim Batchelder: I did a little digging last year and found this in the Andover Advertiser. I think the house was located at the corner of what is now South Main St. and Alderbrook Road.

AA Jan. 22, 1886 – p. 3 col 1 – “Monday morning the residents in this part of town, were very much surprised to learn that and exceptionally large fire had taken place Sunday evening about 11 o’clock in Scotland District. Inquiry developed the fact that the house owned by the heirs of the late Jerimiah Goldsmith and occupied by Mr. Fred O. Parker had burned to the ground. The fire originated in the barn, and had made considerable headway before the occupants of the house were aware of it. Mrs. Parker fortunately awakened, and noticed the red glow on her curtain went immediately to the window to find the barn an embodiment of flame and smoke. She called her husband and spread the alarm through the house in season to give all ample time to make good their escape, which they did uninjured. The loss includes a house, barn, adjoining shed, two horses, seven cows, carriages, farm wagons, and all necessary tools which are included in a farm stock. The insurance on the personal property we have been unable to find out, the amount of loss in also in darkness. The loss of the house, barn and sheds is about $3800. Insurance $2000. Mrs. Parker speaks of the kindness received from her neighbors, and is at present in the house of Mrs. Stephen D. Abbot, with her family. This is unquestionably another case of incendiarism. As to whom the perpetrators are we have no idea, but we certainly hope that if the Police do not take the matter in hands the insurance agents will. A young man employed on the farm is sure tramps being in the barn on last Sunday evening. Now if this is the work of tramps (which we doubt) we know of no way in which this thing can be found, but if it’s the cowardly work of a citizen of this town, no pains should be spared to ferret it.”