The town of West Newbury provides the following history: West Newbury’s history as a town began in 1635 when 23 men and their families, all from England, sailed through Plum Island Sound and up the Parker River, landing in Newbury. As more settlers arrived and families increased, land in Newbury became scarce, and some people moved westward to the “upper woods” beyond the Artichoke River.
The town granted large parcels of land to early settlers: in 1638, 300 acres to Edward Rawson; in 1644, 80 acres to John Emery; in 1659, 103 acres to Francis Browne, all around the Artichoke River. In 1663, Capt. William Gerrish was granted 260 acres at the Groveland line. What was referred to as the “first division of lots” occurred in 1686, parceling out the remaining land between the Bradford Road and the Merrimack River, from the land of Emery to that of Gerrish. The rest of what became West Newbury was granted to settlers in five subsequent divisions.
The area that became West Newbury was primarily a farming community until the late 1700s. Enoch Noyes began making horn buttons and coarse combs in 1759 at his home near 127 Main Street, and by the 1830s and 1840s, there were 32 comb shops in town. Another local industry was shoe-making, which began with farmers making shoes for their families in little shops on their farms. Later, large shoe shops were started, and West Newbury in 1875 was a booming industrial town with over 2,000 people and doing a half-million dollars’ worth of business a year. There were three large comb factories and seven shoe factories.
In 1819, West Newbury finally became a separate town from Newbury, after years of petitioning the General Court of Massachusetts for that privilege, having received decades of opposition from the Town of Newbury.
Resources:
- The linked descriptions below are provided by MACRIS and the West Newbury Historical Commission. On the MACRIS page, click on the INV link to download a PDF history of the house and the families who lived there.
- Photos are from the West Newbury Patriot Properties site, as well as the dates of construction for those not documented on the MACRIS site.
- Read: Images of America, West Newbury
- Historic Sites Survey Phase 1, West Newbury Historical Commission
- Historic Sites Survey Phase 2, West Newbury Historical Commission
- Map of the west parish of Newbury, taken by John Brown, esquire, and dated September 15, 1729, on which is drawn a representation of every house in the parish.
- 1729 West Newbury map
- 1850 West Newbury map
- 1872 West Newbury map
- 1884 West Newbury map
- 1884 West Newbury map (Main St. closeup)
- Coffin’s History of Newbury
Recent Research
Newell-Loring House, 238 Main St., West Newbury (c. 1746) - Sometime in the mid-18th century, Moses Newell Senior (1716-1795) moved from Roxbury to West Newbury and purchased land, which is now Newell Farm on Main Street. His wife was Sarah Gerrish. In 1846, his son, Colonel Moses Newell, built the 25-room house now standing at 243 Main St. This house was originally on the Newell property and… Continue reading Newell-Loring House, 238 Main St., West Newbury (c. 1746) 
254 Main St. W. Newbury, the William Follansbe house (c. 1720) - In the 19th Century, the William Follansbe house was associated with the W. Newbury comb industry, and was later the home of Pulitzer Prize winner Margaret Louise Coit Elwell.… Continue reading 254 Main St. W. Newbury, the William Follansbe house (c. 1720) Macris listings
West Newbury homes built before the Revolutionary War
WNB.1, Merrill, Abel House, 114 Ash St, r 1725
WNB.5, 26 Brickett St, r 1725
WNB.12, 37 Cherry Hill St, c 1760
4 Crane neck, West Newbury Ma: 1750
13 Crane Neck, West Newbury MA 1748
WNB.17, Hale, Thomas House, 81 Crane Neck Rd, 1717
360 Main St., WestNewbury, 1713
WNB.93, March, Samuel House, 444 Main St, c 1690
WNB.96, Sawyer, Dr. Enoch Jr. House, 476 Main St, c 1760
WNB.176, Carr, John House, 495 Main St, 1729
WNB.181, Chase, John House, 503 Main St, c 1725
WNB.183, Chace, John House, 505 Main St, 1699
WNB.108, Morse, Timothy House, 628 Main St, c 1730
WNB.109, Tufts, Rev. John House, 750 Main St, c 1714
760 Main St., West newbury MA: 1742-1792
WNB.113, Greenleaf, Capt. Jonathan House, 796 Main St, c 1729
WNB.114, Greenleaf, Tristram – Greenleaf, Edmund House, 800 Main St, r 1750
WNB.115, Moody, Caleb II Paint and Harness Shop, 801 Main St, r 1700
WNB.116, Moody, Caleb House, 803 Main St, 1658
WNB.118, Huse, Thomas House, 810 Main St, c 1680
WNB.119, Richardson, William House, 820 Main St, c 1729
WNB.126, Huse, Abel House, 901 Main St, c 1729
WNB.127, Huse, Richard House, 905 Main St, 1724
13 Mechanic St., West Newbury MA 1725
WNB.147, Johnson, Rev. William House, 38 Meetinghouse Hill Rd, r 1775
WNB.148, Hale House, 157 Middle St, 1729
WNB.149, Bartlett, Richard House, 162 Middle St, 1726
WNB.154, Pilsbury, Joseph House, 374 Middle St, c 1729
WNB.155, Davis, Nathaniel House, 406 Middle St, c 1750
WNB.156, 418 Middle St, c 1730
WNB.157, Chase, Thomas House, 5 Moulton St, 1731
102 Moulton St., West Newbury MA, 1729 (WNB.187). Located opposite the intersection with Brickett St.
6 Pleasant St., 1690
8 Pleasant St., West Newbury, 1759
WNB.158 Marshall, John House 9 Pleasant St West Newbury 1740-1828
WNB.168, 71 Stewart St, c 1775
2 Training Field Rd. West Newbury MA, 1730
WNB.180, Bailey House, 8 Training Field Rd, c 1700
WNB.182 Pillsbury, Alfred House 10 Training Field Rd West Newbury c 1720
WNB.188, Brown, R. L. – Arrowhead Farm, 135 Turkey Hill Rd, c 1760
11 Worths Lane, West Newbury MA 1726
17th & 18th Century Houses of Essex County, Massachusetts 
Thomas Meady Chase house 224 Main St West Newbury, Ma , was one of the last working comb factories in the town. It was not included.
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Sorry, this site is about Colonial-era houses constructed up to the end of the 18th Century. The Thomas Meady Chase house is a Greek Revival house constructed in 1848. You can view the listing and download the full history at https://mhc-macris.net/details?mhcid=WNB.63.
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Thank you for your reply and the correction! I grew up there and knew it was Greek Revival! I was caught up in the historic part and not paying attention to the style. Thanks for the link!
On Tue, Jan 24, 2023, 3:32 PM 17th & 18th Century historic houses of the
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WNB.40 Noyes, David House 78 Main St West Newbury 1710-1826 // the photo for this listing is the Pillsbury house.
The actual 78 Main St building is styled currently “The Old Homestead” and is dated from 1827.
The house immediately to its west (74) is another Noyes house c. 1790 [by Ephrain, though David eventually owned and sold it c. 1840’s] and is one of the few brick houses in the town. A comb operation was conducted in the lower level with living accomodations in the upper levels.
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