Johnson Cottage Complex
The First Historical Society headquarters
The original building, the Johnson Cottage is the last surviving artisan’s cottage in North Andover’s Old Center. In 1789, Frederick Ballard, a hatter, bought this empty parcel as part of four acres of empty land between Osgood Street and Academy Road. Seven years later, Ballard sold the property to Daniel Hardy with a two-room cottage, a popular architectural design at the time, and barn standing upon it.
The cottage was expanded by the next owner, Samuel Johnson sometime after 1796, to consist of three rooms: a bedroom, expanded kitchen, and a formal parlor. Johnson Cottage was eventually sold to the Stevens family as a guesthouse but was never expanded beyond its early 19th century appearance. The interior retains many Georgian design influences and is a rare surviving example of this type of house.
The house currently conveys family life in the Early Republic era of North Parish, Andover history.
lucy amelia stevens & samuel Dale Stevens
When Samuel Dale Stevens married Lucy Amelia Abbot in 1885, the couple worked with many other descendants of the town's early settlers to found a society to “preserve all the traditions and historic events of interest" relating to the town with a view to building "a collection of interesting relics connected with the history of Andover."
Serving as the first President of the Historical Society, Samuel Dale Stevens provided Johnson Cottage as a meeting house and collections repository.
Founders Hall
Founders Hall, originally the "Museum Building", was built in 1932 to expand the adjacent Johnson Cottage in order to house the galleries of the North Andover Historical Society. Today, Founders Hall provides community meeting and education space to the public.
