The Blaine House

By Earle G. Shettleworth Jr.

The Blaine House in Augusta is one of Maine's most notable homes. In 1862, three decades after the house was built by Capt. James Hall in the early 1830s, James and Harriet Blaine moved in. The home became the setting for one of the most meteoric careers in American politics, during which James Blaine served as Speaker of the US House of Representatives, US senator, secretary of state, and Republican candidate for president in 1884. After the deaths of her parents, the Blaines" daughter Harriet Blaine Beale gave the house to the state in 1919. Since 1920, it has served as the official residence of the state's governors and their families. As a symbol of state government, it ranks with the Maine State House. The house has been a National Historic Landmark since 1964. Architecturally, it reflects a combination of Federal, Victorian, and Colonial Revival styles. Today, the Blaine House functions as a social showcase for Maine, a working office, and family living quarters.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Release date: Jun 2, 2014
• ISBN: 9781439645468

Earle G. Shettleworth Jr.

Earle G. Shettleworth Jr. has served as the director of the Maine Historic Preservation Commission since 1976 and as Maine's state historian since 2004. He has coauthored or authored eight other Arcadia publications.

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