The L'Hommedieu-Gwinnup House is a
late 18th-century, early 19th-century town house representative of the
domestic architecture of the time. This house originally stood on
Spring Street in Morristown on the lot owned by Nathaniel L'Hommedieu
before the Revolution and acquired by John Gwinnup in 1775. The exact
age of the present house has not been determined. Its original section
has four rooms on the first floor, four bedrooms on the second floor
and a basement kitchen. A narrow central hall, which provides space
for the stairs, runs from the front to the rear of the house. On the
right side of the house, each of the four rooms has a fireplace, and
there is a large fireplace in the basement kitchen. There are
indications that there were fireplaces on the left side of the house
that have been removed.
The most interesting feature of the house is its beautifully paneled front door. The door is recessed and has sidelights and a transom with small square panes. This door may have been installed after the house was built.
The house was moved to Historic
Speedwell when an urban renewal project threatened it with demolition.
The trustees agreed to accept the responsibility for the repair and
future maintenance of the building provided that the federal
government at its expense would move the house, reconstruct the
foundation at a new site, and place the house on it.
Since then a dormer window, modern windows, and two layers of siding have been removed. Seventy percent of the original clapboards remained on the front and walls of the building. These clapboards and the original windows were reproduced to finish the exterior on three sides. The rear wall, which had been altered when the house was on Spring Street, was restored under the direction of an architectural historian.
The L'Hommedieu House serves as Historic Speedwell's education center. The first floor provides a meeting area and changing exhibits. The basement houses a recreated 18th century kitchen where open hearth cooking demonstrations are presented.
