Wadsworth-Longfellow House

Here is a photo from one of our visits to Portland, Maine, standing in front of the Longfellow House. Sitting right on Congress Street, in the middle of downtown life. is this Wadsworth-Longfellow House, the oldest surviving structure on the Portland peninsula. It was built in 1785-1786 by General Peleg Wadsworth, a Revolutionary War hero and grandfather of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, one of America’s most beloved poets. Longfellow was born here in 1807 and spent his childhood within these walls.

Originally constructed as a two-story brick home, the house gained its distinctive third floor after a chimney fire in 1815 required rebuilding. The home remained in the Longfellow family for more than a century which ensured many of the original furnishings and personal objects survived intact.

The house was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1962, recognizing not only its architectural importance but also its role in shaping one of the country’s most influential literary figures. Today, the house is owned and operated by the Maine Historical Society