View source for General Rufus Putnam House

{{short description|Historic house in Massachusetts, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox NRHP
| name                 = General Rufus Putnam House
| nrhp_type            = nhl
| image                = General Rufus Putnam House, Main Street, Rutland (Worcester County, Massachusetts).jpg
| alt                  = Image of a two-story frame house with hipped roof and two chimneys
| caption              = General Rufus Putnam House, c. 1934
| locmapin             = Massachusetts#USA
| map_alt              =
| map_caption          =
| coordinates          = {{coord|42|22|17|N|71|58|03|W|display=inline,title}}
| location             = [[Rutland, Massachusetts]]
| area                 = {{Convert|135|acres|ha}}
| built                = 1750
| architect            =
| architecture         = 2-story rectangular frame, hipped roof
| added                = 28 November 1972
| designated_nrhp_type = 28 November 1972
| visitation_num       =
| visitation_year      =
| refnum               = 72001330<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2008a}}</ref>
| mpsub                =
}}
The '''General Rufus Putnam House''' (also '''Bliss–Murray–Putnam House''') is a [[National Historic Landmark]] at 344 Main Street in [[Rutland, Massachusetts|Rutland]], [[Worcester County, Massachusetts]], US.
==History==
The two-story wood-frame house was built between 1760 and 1765 by [[John Murray (Massachusetts)|John Murray]],<ref name="nom">{{cite web |title= NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY - NOMINATION FORM - General Rufus Putnam House |url= {{NHLS url|id=72001330}} |accessdate=2 January 2009}}</ref> a [[Scotch-Irish American|Scots-Irish]] [[immigrant]].<ref name="bbhist">{{cite web |title= A History of the General Rufus Putnam House...  |url= http://www.rufusputnamhouse.com/history.htm |accessdate= 2 January 2009}}</ref>  Murray became a [[Mandamus Councillor]], who enforced the tax laws and was only responsible to the governor and king.  On August 24, 1774, an angry mob forced him to flee his home.  He escaped to [[Boston]] and later to [[New Brunswick]], never to return.<ref name="bbhist"/>  Murray's daughter had married Daniel Bliss. They were also [[Loyalist (American Revolution)|Loyalists]] and lived in the house.  During the [[American Revolutionary War]], the [[Commonwealth of Massachusetts]] confiscated the property.<ref name="nom"/><ref name="Hubbard, Robert Ernest pp. 80-3">Hubbard, Robert Ernest.  ''General Rufus Putnam: George Washington's Chief Military Engineer and the "Father of Ohio,"'' pp. 80-3, 203, McFarland & Company, Inc., Jefferson, North Carolina.  {{ISBN|978-1-4766-7862-7}}.</ref>
On May 24, 1781, General [[Rufus Putnam]] purchased the property from the government for 993 pounds and lived there until 1788.<ref name="nom"/> He left to settle the [[Northwest Territories]] as a leader of the [[Ohio Company of Associates]].  There he helped found [[Marietta, Ohio]] and built [[Rufus Putnam House|a new home]], also NRHP listed.<ref name="Hubbard, Robert Ernest pp. 80-3"/>
The house was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] and designated a [[National Historic Landmark]] in 1972, in recognition of its association with Putnam.<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2008a}}</ref><ref name="nom"/> The home is currently operated as a [[bed and breakfast]].<ref name="Hubbard, Robert Ernest pp. 80-3"/>
==Description==
The house is a wood-frame two-story house sheathed in clapboard, with a hipped roof and two interior brick chimneys.  A two-story addition was added to the rear of the house early in the 20th century.  The house front is five bays wide, with a center doorway that is flanked by pilasters and topped by a transom window and flat pediment.  The interior of the main block consists of four rooms on each floor, surrounding a central hallway with stairwell.  The second-floor bedrooms have retained much of their original woodwork, including pine wainscoting and paneling.  Some of the first-floor rooms have had floors replaced using floorboards taken from the attic.<ref name="nom"/>
==See also==
*[[List of National Historic Landmarks in Massachusetts]]
*[[National Register of Historic Places listings in Worcester County, Massachusetts]]
*[[Rufus Putnam House]] – Rufus Putnam's home in Marietta, Ohio
*[[General Israel Putnam House]] – Danvers, Massachusetts birthplace of Major General Israel Putnam (Rufus Putnam's first cousin, once removed)
*[[Deacon Edward Putnam Jr. House]] – Middleton, Massachusetts home of Deacon Edward Putnam Jr. (Rufus Putnam's uncle)
*[[Edward Putnam House]] – Sutton, Massachusetts home of Edward Putnam (Rufus Putnam's first cousin)
==References==
{{Reflist}}
== External links ==
{{commons category|General Rufus Putnam House}}
* [http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.ma0956 Historic American Buildings Survey - Drawings, Photos and Data, c. 1934]
* {{NHLS url|id=72001330|title=National Park Service Photos, 1971|photos=y}}
[[Image:RutlandMA RufusPutnamHouse.jpg|thumb|left|The house in 2012]]
{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts}}
[[Category:Houses completed in 1760]]
[[Category:National Historic Landmarks in Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Irish-American culture in Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Scotch-Irish American history]]
[[Category:Scottish-American culture in Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Rutland, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Worcester County, Massachusetts]]