The Fisher-Richardson House is owned by the Town of Mansfield and opened to the public by the Mansfield Historical Society, which owns the collection of artifacts inside. It has been owned by the town since 1930, when the town acquired and restored it, It is one of Mansfield's oldest buildings.
The earliest description of the property that we have is from the 1723 deed, by which Isaac Wellman bought the land.
No buildings were noted on the property at that time. Wellman apparently built the first house between 1723 and 1731, when the precinct meeting was held at his home. His probate record shows that that house was located to the north along present-day South Main Street. Isaac Wellman's estate was divided in 1743, and his son Ebenezer inherited the land on which the Fisher-Richardson House was built.  We believe that Ebenezer Wellman constructed this house in 1743, when his own estate was divided and a house is mentioned on this site.
The Fisher-Richardson House was built in two sections, using post and beam construction. The east half of the house is the oldest, and it combines characteristics of building practices from both the early and mid-1700s. A feature of early 1700s construction is the exposed and decorated frame: we can see the posts and beams (exposed), and they are decorated smoothly finished for viewing, rather than boxed in. The gambrel roof and the floorplan, however, represent a slightly later period. Instead of a large room with a lean-to at the rear, the house is a full two rooms deep.
 

1743 Rendering

Mansfield Historical Society
53 Rumford Avenues
Mansfield, Massachusetts 02048
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