Historic Sites
Wadsworth-Longfellow House
Built 1785

The Wadsworth-Longfellow House is a historic brick edifice located at 485 Congress Street, in ^Portland, Maine. Within its walls lived three generations of Wadsworth family, who had made significant contributions to the political, literary, and cultural life of New England and the United States.

The house was built by General Peleg Wadsworth, the grandfather of the most famous member in the family tree - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow – in 1785-86. The house, made with bricks from Philadelphia, is in fact the oldest and first whole brick dwelling in the state. Originally two storied, a third story was added in 1815 by Henry’s parents.

Anne Longfellow Pierce - Henry’s younger sister - was the last person to stay in the house. After her death in 1901, according to the deed she executed in 1895, the house was handed over to the Maine Historical Society to be preserved as a memorial to her famous brother and their family.

The Wadsworth-Longfellow House was the first house museum in Maine to be opened to the public. The family’s collection of colonial and federal furniture, portraits, sculpture, and works on paper - that illustrates the changes in style, technology, and attitude over the 19th century - are treasured in the house. Virtually all artifacts present in the house are originals from the Wadsworth and Longfellow families.

The house has been looked upon as an important architectural artifact from New England's past. After comprehensive renovations that took almost two and a half years, the house was reopened to the public in June, 2002.

The Wadsworth-Longfellow House is open to individual, group, and school tours.

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