The Pink House - Newbury, MA
The Pink House on Plum Island Turnpike in Newbury, MA, is a celebrated landmark full of local lore. The story goes – a local couple was getting divorced, and part of the agreement required the husband to build a replica of their house. However, the agreement didn’t specify where, and he built it on top of a salt marsh. It was identical to the house they used to share, except that the plumbing used saltwater, which made it uninhabitable. She turned down the house, and her ex-husband and his family used it as a summer house until they sold it in the 1940s.
In 2017, a group called Support the Pink House investigated the legend and found some holes in the story. The couple divorced a few years after moving into the Pink House, and the divorce papers do not mention any property changing hands. There are no records that can confirm the house is a replica, and fresh running water was almost non-existent in the area in the 1920s. The real scandal seems to be that the husband promised his wife a new life with their son in the house but abandoned her there for another woman soon after moving in.
The house has been vacant since the early 2000s and is currently owned by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife / Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, who purchased it in September 2011. They slated it for demolition, but because of the efforts of Save the Pink House, it was saved in August 2016. The Pink House will be preserved with a few restrictions. It has to remain the same shape, and of course – it has to remain pink.
In 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service began the process of demolishing the Pink House. However, it remains in limbo after Governor Maura Healey paused the demolition plans. The decision followed protests by local advocates and a $1 million pledge from an anonymous donor to fund preservation efforts. While supporters argue the house is a vital cultural landmark, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service cites safety and environmental concerns in the flood-prone area as reasons for removal. Ongoing discussions aim to determine its fate while balancing community values and conservation priorities.
Matt Lambros MA Newbury Dec 31, 2021 Architecture
Dec 31, 2021
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