THE LADD-GILMAN HOUSE
Closely linked with romance and history is the Ladd-Gilman house, one of
the notable colonial houses at Exeter, New Hampshire. This mansion was
not always of its present dimensions. When built by Nathaniel Ladd in
1721 it was of brick and about half the size of the present structure.
It is situated on a large area of land, with a frontage on Water Street,
on a part of the original lot that was purchased of Oliphalet Coffin in
the year above mentioned. For many years this estate was held in the
possession of the Ladd family, descending from father to son until 1747,
when it was purchased by Colonel Nathaniel Gilman, a leading citizen of
the place and a man of influence. Gilman came from a family which had
been prominent in the town for many years.
[Illustration: PLATE XXXI.--Ladd-Gilman House, Exeter, N. H.]
Here in 1752 his son, Colonel Nicholas Gilman, then only twenty-one
years of age, brought his bride, Anne Taylor, a very beautiful young
woman who had descended from Puritan ancestors and who was very
popular with the patriots of that day. During their residency the house,
considered at that period one of the best in Exeter, was enlarged to its
present size, and the exterior was entirely covered with wood to
correspond with the additions.
Colonel Gilman was distinguished as one of a quartet who furnished
brains for the Old Granite State, being known as the Robert Morris of
the province and possessing not only influence but wealth and ability.
He was a close friend of Governor Wentworth who, with his son, was a
frequent visitor at the house; so sincere was their intimacy that when
Colonel Gilman sided with the colonists Governor Wentworth declared that
instead of making a rupture in their friendship, if the Rebellion were
crushed, he should save his friend. This great intimacy was also shared
with Count Rumford.
It was in 1775, several years after the house was enlarged, that Gilman
was made Treasurer and Receiver-general of the State, in which office he
stayed until his death in 1783. The treasury building was a room in his
own house. This may in a way account for there being two entrance
doors, one for family guests and the other for business purposes. The
house has never been altered, with the exception of the introduction of
modern improvements, since the day that it was enlarged. It is a fine,
substantial building, two and a half stories in height, showing dormer
windows and a six-foot chimney. The huge fireplaces are still kept
intact, few if any showing hand-carving. The porches are dignified but
ample in their lines of architecture, and the entire exterior shows an
unusual type.
The room nearest the entrance door at the extreme left was used as a
treasury, for in addition to the office of State Treasurer, Colonel
Gilman held the position of Continental Loan Officer of the State, all
the money being received here. In this same room the Committee of Safety
used to meet, and it was here that the Battle of Bennington was
discussed and planned.
Gilman was a great friend of Daniel Webster, who never came to Exeter
without passing the principal part of his time in this house, the bed in
which he slept being still shown in one of the large continental
chambers.
The house was noted for its hospitality, a home where many gatherings,
both for charity and pleasure, were held. The mistress of the household
was a famous New England housekeeper, who possessed the whole art of
housekeeping at her fingers' end. Beautiful as a young bride, she was
even more so in after years. Her trim figure became rounded out, while
her dark eyes and fresh, rich color preserved their brightness. Colonel
Gilman was a striking figure, six feet tall, with an erect carriage. He
wore until the day of his death a ruffled shirt-front and a cue.
It was during his occupancy that the Declaration of Independence was
passed. The Legislature had not adjourned when the message came, and the
President, who was in waiting, decided the documents must be publicly
read. The news spread like lightning; the farmer eager to hear all
dropped his scythe in the swath, the mechanic rushed from his shop,
while the housewife forsook her spinning-wheel, all meeting in a general
enthusiasm to hear the words that gave them freedom and a country. The
document was brought into Exeter by a courier, who dashed suddenly into
the village, bearing in his hand a letter addressed to the Convention of
New Hampshire and signed by no less a personage than John Hancock. On,
on, he rode, until he reached the Gilman house and delivered it into
the hands of the host. It was read in the village square amid intense
enthusiasm by his son, John Taylor Gilman, who was also destined to play
an important part in our country's history.
John Taylor Gilman was then just out of his teens. He was a handsome man
with magnetic power and an idol of the people. No one in the whole
audience was more thrilled than was the father of the reader, who,
filled with ardor, paused often to crush down the rush of sentiment that
overmastered speech. Colonel Gilman was distinguished as one of those
who financed the Revolution, and his son succeeded him in this service.
After Colonel Gilman's death, in 1783, the house was left to John Taylor
Gilman, who inherited his father's love for political power. He, like
his sire, was a most comely man, just entering into manhood when he
married Dorothea Folsom, a great-granddaughter of the noted
Revolutionary hero. She was only twenty-one years old when she married,
being one of the belles of the village and a most estimable young lady.
For sixty years she directed the affairs of her household in a most
exemplary manner and was the personification of hospitality.
Directly after their marriage, the young husband, then only twenty-two
years of age, gathered a company together and marched for Cambridge,
where he was encamped for a short time only. Later on he acted as
commissary to supply the three regiments of the State at Cambridge, for
he was considered too important a person to be allowed to take a place
in the field.
In 1779 he was elected a member of the New Hampshire Legislature and was
called in 1780 as the only delegate to attend the gathering which was to
take place at Hartford, Connecticut. Those were the days when there was
no money or credit in the treasury, so that he was forced to take the
journey on horseback. He was absent six weeks, paying his own expenses
everywhere out of his personal income.
So popular did he become that he was elected to Congress in 1782, being
one of the youngest and most popular members. Later on he became
Treasurer of State, succeeding his father in this work. He was made
Governor of New Hampshire, which office he held for fourteen consecutive
years and later on accepted the nomination for two years more. In 1816
he declined the election, giving as an excuse that he preferred to spend
his remaining days in quietness.
This Governor Gilman was a portly man, weighing two hundred pounds and
standing six feet in his stockings. He was a dignified old gentleman,
preserving his vigor to the very end. While the latter part of his life
was spent in renewing social relations with his friends, the memories of
the past were always with him, and he was never so happy as when he
recalled the days of Washington, who was a personal friend. Strong and
original in intellect, few men were able to foresee as he did the future
of his country.
It is said that the night before his death he was brought downstairs by
a faithful old negro retainer to spend his last evening with his family.
He had a clear realization that his time was drawing near, and he gave
full instructions to his family concerning his burial and the manner in
which they should cherish his memory. He requested particularly that no
one should wear mourning for him--"Spend upon the living, not the dead,"
he said. After a short time he was reminded that he was getting very
tired, and he left the room remarking: "I have no disposition to leave
this precious circle. I love to be here surrounded by my family and my
friends." He commended them to God, saying: "I am ready to go and I wish
you all good night."
The brothers of this noted man also held positions in State affairs and
in the militia. His brother Nicholas at one time lived in this house. He
occupied the position of lieutenant, captain, adjutant, and
adjutant-general in the Revolution, being also a member of Congress. He
took his seat in the United States Senate on March 3, 1797, and came out
in views a solid Federal.
Governor John Taylor Gilman, who succeeded his father, Colonel Nicholas,
had eleven children, many of whom were married in the State Room of this
house, which is so closely connected with the political events of the
Revolution and where so many distinguished guests have been entertained.
The Gilmans were one of the most distinguished families in Exeter,
coming up from Massachusetts to join Reverend John Wheelwright's little
colony. Their enterprise, energy, and thrift made them natural leaders
in the community. If there was a meeting-house to be erected, there was
always a Gilman on the committee. Should there be a military company to
be enlisted, there would always be a man of that name in the ranks. When
the commissioners, seven in number, distributed the common lands in
1739, there were four of this family among the band. Little wonder then
that their name is allied with the principal events of history.
[Illustration: PLATE XXXII.--Parlor, Ladd-Gilman House.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXXIII.--Living Room, Ladd-Gilman House; Robert
Treat Room, Ladd-Gilman House.]
The hallway of this home is found to be a small and unpretentious one,
with a winding flight of stairs at one side that leads to the
second-story floor. At the left of the side entrance is the Treasury
Room, where, during the lifetime of Gilman, important meetings were held
and State secrets were often discussed. The furniture from this room has
long since been gone, but the white pine walls with their coat of paint
are still as fresh as they were the day they were built. The huge
fireplace without tiles bespeaks plainly the days of prosperity. At the
right of the hallway is a large, square room that was used in the olden
times as a dining-room. There are no secret closets in this house, with
the exception of a sliding panel in the Grill Room, which when lifted
gives access to the wine closet below. Beyond that is the old kitchen,
which is now used as a dining-room. It still shows the old brick oven,
where during Governor Gilman's occupancy the baking was done, and also
the Dutch oven, where the meat was roasted in the governor's day. On the
mantel over the old fireplace are displayed some fine bits of old
pewter, while the windows of this house still retain the small panes.
The room at the right of the family entrance is known as the State Room.
It is a dignified room, large enough to have held easily the notable
assemblages that must have met there during his occupancy. The fireplace
has no mantel, but a wide panelling, such as is found only in houses of
that period. The only ornamentations are the elaborate columns that
define the fireplace and panelling. The room is finished in wood panels.
The huge beams have been cased in, and the windows with their wooden
shutters remain as they were first built. The furnishing is all of the
colonial period, showing slat-back chairs and cane-seated ones. A
feature of this room is the wonderful old mirror, one of the largest
ever made and so tall that an opening had to be made in the ceiling,
that it might be set up. It is a room typical of the period and shows
woodwork that has never been replaced. The andirons are painted in
brilliant colors, showing the Hessian soldiers,--a kind that were in use
directly after the Revolution.
[Illustration: PLATE XXXIV.--Ladd-Gilman House; Prison, Ladd-Gilman
House.]
The chambers have each an old four-poster, while their fireplaces are
unlike many of that period, being finished in stone instead of wood. In
the middle chamber is a fine example of a field bed, which was used by
Daniel Webster. In this room also is a queer little mahogany piece that,
when the cover is lifted, shows a foot-bath that was taken by Governor
Gilman to Washington during his term of service there. In addition to
this there is a quaint little trunk of leather, which was used by the
governor to transport his belongings to and fro,--not a very elaborate
wardrobe if it all went into the one trunk.
The Middle Chamber, as this is familiarly known, has also one of the old
fireplaces without a mantel. Every room in the house shows the
wide-beamed ceilings that came into use about that period.
Probably the most interesting room is a small one at one side which was
used as a prisoner's room. Here the windows are very small and were
formerly barred over. In this room the poor debtors were kept until
released by their friends.
In the capacity of Treasurer of State, Colonel Gilman had his office in
the house, and here he affixed his signature to the paper bills of
credit to which the State and country were obliged to resort in order to
carry on the war. It was a duty, however, that still permitted him to
devote part of his time to military service, holding the position of
colonel of the Fourth Regiment of Militia and aiding in the capture of
General Burgoyne. Within the walls of this mansion were born his
children, three of whom became conspicuous in the history of the State.
John Taylor Gilman, who succeeded his father, held many offices of trust
and in 1814, at the alarm of Portsmouth, he took personal command of a
large detachment of militia stationed by his order in that vicinity.
Nicholas Gilman, Jr., who resided in the house until the age of
twenty-one, became senior Deputy Adjutant-general of the Continental
army on the staff of General Washington and participated in all the
important battles and campaigns in which, under Washington, the army
engaged. In 1787 Captain Nicholas Gilman and John Langdon were chosen
delegates to the Federal Convention of States, which assembled at
Philadelphia and framed and adopted the Constitution, the delegates
signing in the order of States. The signatures of Langdon and Gilman
followed immediately after that of General Washington, as President of
the Convention. Gilman was one of the youngest members of that body,
that combined patriotism, experience, and character.
The third son, Colonel Nathaniel Gilman, succeeded his father Colonel
Nicholas Gilman, Sr., in the treasury department--The Continental Loan
Office--as early as 1783. From 1818 to 1824 the mansion was occupied by
Captain Nathaniel Gilman, son of Colonel Nathaniel Gilman and grandson
of Colonel Nicholas Gilman, Sr.
The house itself is in an excellent state of preservation. The partially
panelled walls, the quaint windows with wide sills, the large and
cheerful fireplaces in which the original dogs still do duty, belong
distinctively to colonial days. The small, high windows fitted with
wooden shutters show the great thickness of the house wall, and the
whole surroundings impress one with solidity and comfort.