Marion (Old Rochester) is one of the oldest towns in the United States, and the Sippican Historical Society maintains an extensive collection of documentation on its historic buildings. In 1998, the Sippican Historical Society commissioned an architectural survey of Marion’s historic homes and buildings. Over 100 were cataloged and photographed. SHS will feature one building a week so that the residents of Marion can understand more about its unique historical architecture.
The home at 304 Front Street, in the Old Landing area of Marion, was built in 1859 for shipbuilder David Hathaway. It ranks among the town’s most substantial Greek Revival residences and illustrates not only Marion’s mid-19th-century maritime prosperity, but also the Old Landing’s status as the home of sea captains. Hathaway built coastal schooners at his wharf, and these schooners were an important part of Marion’s economy. The coastal schooners carried salt to towns between Nova Scotia and the Carolinas. In fact, the operators of Marion’s coastal schooners named the town after Revolutionary War hero Francis Marion (known by the nickname “Swamp Fox”) of South Carolina, whose exploits in that area became well known to Marion mariners.