Farwell Jones House in Minute Man National Historical Park
The Farwell Jones House is located on the west side of the Battle Road Unit of Minute Man National Historical Park. It is one of eleven houses within the park that existed when the Battles of Lexington and Concord took place on April 19, 1775. The National Park Service calls it a “witness house,” so other than being old and standing on the grounds of the battlefield, there is nothing special about it—no famous people lived here and no historic events took place inside. It is now used for park staff housing and is not open to the public.
Like all points of interest within the Battle Road Unit of the park, the Farwell Jones House is situated along the Battle Road Trail. However, in this case the trail loops around to the backside of the farm, so you cannot see the house from the trail; you can only see it from Lexington Road. Unfortunately, your first opportunity to jump onto the road doesn’t come until you are a quarter mile to the east of the house, thus requiring you to walk a half mile round-trip along a very busy road with no shoulder just to see it—no thanks! (The house next to it, the Stow-Hardy House, is also part of Minute Man National Historic Site.)
West end of the Battle Road Trail (click to enlarge)
The first reference to a building being on the property comes from tax records in 1716, the year John Jones, Farwell’s father, established his farm. Farwell took over the farm around 1760, two years before his father’s death. At the time of the fighting at Lexington and Concord, he was not married, though his widowed sister, Olive Stow, and her two children lived next door. It is unknown if Farwell or his sister were actually at home on April 19, 1775.
Farwell married Hannah Hosmer in 1777 and they had one child, a daughter named Hannah. She inherited the property in 1802, and title was transferred to her husband, Calvin Wright. The couple had two children, and when Calvin died in 1803, the property was split among them.
The house and farm eventually passed out of the Jones Family in 1838, and it had four owners until being sold in 1891 to James Carty, the only other owner of importance. The barn now standing on the property was built by Carty in 1903. Today, the National Park Service uses it for storage.
Carty Barn (photo by National Park Service)
Carty sold the farm in 1907 to George Williams, and it was sold a few more times before ending up in the hands of Aleck and Anna Norwalk in 1946. The Norwalks owned the property when Minute Man National Historical Park was created in 1959. The federal government was authorized to use eminent domain to take ownership of all land within the boundaries of the park. However, unlike a few other properties that were purchased right away, it wasn’t until 1976 that a deal was finalized for the Farwell lot. Anna Norwalk (Aleck had died) was paid $400,000, plus she and her children were allowed to remain living in the house for 25 years. Anna died in 1994, and her daughter remained on the farm until the National Park Service took full ownership in 2001.
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Last updated on September 4, 2023
