1700 to 1800
The Ware Family Crypt139 Main Street
Now only a few feet from the expanded Public Library, the Ware Crypt was nearly destroyed when the land was cleared around it and the surrounding area, subsequently called the moonscape, was made ready for development. It may be one of the oldest structures in Norfolk, and was saved by state law because it is a structure associated with burials and cemeteries. It was built by early Ware family members as a place of temporary internment when a death occurred during the winter and the ground was too frozen to dig a grave. No one was permanently buried in the crypt, they all left promptly with the spring thaw. Interments in the Ware Crypt are documented as recently as the early 1920s. Portions of the crypt were inadvertently damaged by a bulldozer. Several stones were able to be reassembled as they stand today. Originally the crypt was built into the face of a substantial hillside - the hill is gone - the crypt remains.
The Cook Tavern237 Main Street
This house was originally built circa 1790 (at this point it has been documented as far back as 1800) and served as the Daniel Cook Tavern. Daniel Cook married Eunice Ware, the daughter of Josiah Ware, 2nd owner of the Josiah Ware Tavern. Later it was the main farmhouse for an 80-acre farm. We know that Josiah Ware 4th, born in 1812, a descendent of Robert Ware, spent his early childhood in this house under the guardianship of his uncle Daniel Cook - after his mother had passed away in 1819.
Josiah was appointed the first agent at the Norfolk Railroad Station and had a large lumber business in town in partnership with C. J. Murphy. A generous man, Josiah, helped pay for the repair and remodeling of the old church on Town Hill installing a large clock in the East tower at his own expense, helping to convert it into our first Town Hall which was later destroyed by fire in 1922.
The house across the street, known as the Perrigo House, was the black smith shop for the tavern for a time. The chimney construction, visible in the basement, is very early - the chimney is supported by pegged beams and no masonry. The cellar walls consist of very large stones with no mortar. Plank and batten interior doors, wide board floors and hand hewn, pegged timbers provide further evidence of early colonial construction.
George E. Holbrook House55 Fruit Street
The George E. Holbrook House was built c. 1784. The Norfolk atlas of 1858 shows G.E. Holbrook as the owner of this dwelling as well as the property across the street. George Holbrook was the son of John Holbrook, a North Wrentham native and noted naturalist of the south.
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The Harris/Rockwood House76 Union Street
Identified as the Benjamin Rocket House for over 100 years, recent research has revealed a different story. The house was built circa 1725 by Nicholas Harris on land acquired from Daniel Blake. From 1725-1784 it was owned and occupied by the Harris Family, first Nicholas, 1725-1771, and then his son Obediah 1771-1784. It was sold in 1784 to Jeremiah Mann and Elisha Rockwood, (son of Benjamin Rockwood and Ruth Mann) and remained in the Rockwood Family for 135 years, (1791-1926). Elisha was the great grandson of Nathaniel Rockwood, brother of Benjamin Rocket of "Indian Rock" renown and great nephew of Benjamin Rockett. Benjamin Rockett had only one son, Hezekiah, who died in infancy.
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The Warelands103 Boardman Street
Robert Ware the Aged claimed this land in 1661 during the earliest attempt to settle Wollomopaug by Dedham. In the 1690s Ebenezer Ware, Robert's grandson, built a dwelling, that no longer stands. The current Warelands was built in 1733 by Ebenezer and his youngest son, Elisha and is known as The Elisha Ware House. The property remained proudly in the Ware family for many generations.
From 1905-1913, society woman Charlotte Barrell Ware, "well known in social circles", shocked many of her contemporary proper Bostonians by operating a unique and internationally famous commercial enterprise on this site, The Warelands Dairy and breeding farm. This was the finest dairy barn and dairy bottling house of its day. The Warelands Dairy produced the highest quality certified milk in the entire United States. In 1909 Charlotte expanded her operations and opened the unique Warelands Dairy School with forty of the top professors in public health in the country on her staff. At a time when hundreds of thousands of children and adults were dying annually of diarrhea and tubercular milk disease, Charlotte Ware's scientific, educational and social-humanitarian impact was immeasurable. She became recognized, internationally, for dramatically influencing agricultural dairy practices, the milk industry and the commercial transport and sale of milk, worldwide.
The Warelands, since November 10, 1977 has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This listing is granted to buildings, structures, objects and sites that have received local, state or national designation based on their historical or archaeological significance. These structures and grounds provide one of the few direct links with the group of hearty pioneers who first settled the Norfolk area and that the value to the Town of Norfolk of these remaining as unaltered as possible is of significant historical and archaeological importance.
"I lived at the Warelands for a few years and can appreciate the significance of the structures. The house itself is raised wood panels and horsehair plaster. It has a center built chimney with five fireplaces with two honeycomb ovens. All the floors are wide pine boards with the exception of the addition of the kitchen in the 70s I believe. The wood in the house is first generation cut. Some panels measuring 18-24" across the grain, single cut. Post and beam structure with original glass panels in the windows. It is the oldest standing structure in the town and was the first farm to produce pasteurized milk. Ebenezer's original house burned and the present house was rebuilt in 1733. Oh, one other thing, it has a ghost, my ex-wife saw it; it is believed to be Elizer Ware. The Ware family used to own all the land up to the railroad station. Some of the trees on the land are over two hundred years old. It is an important piece of the heritage of the town of Norfolk and should not be let go to development at any cost. The cottage and the barn date to the early 20th century and the Charlotte Ware era. It's a 27 acre farm. - "
The Stephen Turner House187 Seekonk Street Stephen Turner House
John Turner was one of the first of 13 settlers of the town of Medfield. His grandson, Steven Turner, came to reside here in 1712. Steven's son Ichabod fought at the Battle of Lexington in 1775. The property passed out of the Turner family's hands, to the Sayles family in 1792. Dendrochronological (tree-ring) analysis indicates that the current structure was built around that time. Of note, there is an inscription on a joist in the dining room dated 1792. The L portion was added to the house sometime prior to 1814. The house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Norfolk CemeteryMain and Seekonk Streets
The Norfolk Cemetery was established circa 1745. Some of Norfolk's most prominent citizens and best known families are interred here. For many years this cemetery has been the focal point of Norfolk Memorial Day parades and celebrations, drawing many townsfolk, veterans organizations and local politicians. In years past young children would gather flowers and march to the cemetery to lay fresh bouquets on the graves of the departed.
The Solomon Blake House97 North Street
This structure, built in 1762, was one of the first full cellar houses to be built in Norfolk. The house has five working fireplaces downstairs and two up. The upstairs suffered fire damage during a blaze in 1925. The Blake family were among some of the first settlers in the Norfolk area and Solomon operated a sawmill on Stony Brook Pond just across the street.
The Fales House33 Fruit Street
This is one of the very few farms still operating in Norfolk although most of the farm operations ended around 2015. Farming started here in the early 1700's and was originally owned and operated by the Fales and Day families. It has changed hands between very few families in its 200 years or so of existence, owned almost exclusively by the Fales and Ehnes families. It is currently known as Jane and Paul's Farm and is a familiar feature on the Norfolk landscape.