Silver Creek
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Bosworth House (Silver Creek)
c. 1683. 814 Hope St.
Deacon Nathaniel Bosworth was one of the incorporators of Bristol, and his house was standing when the first religious service was held here in 1683. Although now much altered, it is the oldest house in Bristol; as was also true of the nearby Reynolds House ( BR2), its outlying location long kept it out of the path of development. In subscribing to the Grand Articles of Bristol's founding, Bosworth pledged that he would build a two-story house with “two good rooms” to a floor. Although it has accrued several later additions, including a two-story wing to the northeast, the house has preserved its original core and its mighty stone chimney.
Silver Creek (named for a creek in the Bosworth lands in England) remained in continuous family possession until 1957. Afterward the house was separated from its grounds, which were mutilated by roadside commercial development. Now it is imperiled by neglect and the loss of its original architectural context.
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