Our Buildings
The Portsmouth Historical Society operates out of two properties. The welcome center and gallery space located at 10 Middle Street and the historic John Paul Jones House.
10 Middle Street
This Portsmouth Historical Society building is really two separate Federal Style buildings both built around 1810. One was originally a private home built by Thomas Morton who ran a grocery store downtown. The other half, at the corner of Islington and Middle Streets, was a private school called Portsmouth Academy. After the school closed, it was rented for a Civil War memorial and in 1898 was entirely renovated for the city’s first public library.
In 1954 a one-story brick addition was built connecting the two properties. In 1976 that addition was totally replaced by a two story modern building that also replaced older additions to the Morton-Benedict house. The combined building served as the city library until 2006 when the new library was built on Parrott Avenue. The landmark is now leased to the Portsmouth Historical Society.
The John Paul Jones House
The building known today as the John Paul Jones House was built in 1758 for Gregory Purcell, a sea captain and merchant. When built, the house was considered to be at the edge of downtown and was amongst only a handful of stately three story homes in the city. The house changed hands several times during the nineteenth century. Owners included Woodbury Langdon, Henry and Alexander Ladd who rented the home to Senator John F. Parrott, and Samuel Lord.
The house has been known as the John Paul Jones House for several generations. Jones (1747-92), the celebrated naval hero of the American Revolution, spent time in Portsmouth in 1777 and again in 1781-82. He is believed to have rented a room in this house during 1777, when the widow of Gregory Purcell was operating a boarding house here.
