Caretaker makes historic house a home ? Local News ...

BEVERLY ? Nancy Peabody Hood has so much information about the Balch House that she?s not sure where it all comes from.

?Don?t ask me how I know this,? she?ll say, before launching into a story about how a teenage Joseph Balch was killed by Indians, or how the mischievous Obear boys burned down John Balch?s barn.

Hood?s knowledge of the history of the Balch House is so deep and intuitive because, for the last 42 years, she has literally lived it. Since 1970, she has not only given tours to generation of visitors but has lived in what is one of the country?s oldest houses.

On Saturday, the Beverly Historical Society will recognize the 88-year-old caretaker as a ?unique and irreplaceable treasure? during a reunion of Balch family members at the Balch House.

?She cares deeply about the house, and she cares deeply about the family history,? Beverly Historical Society Director Susan Goganian said. ?She does all this because she is really devoted.?

Hood grew up in Danvers and lived in the Cove section of Beverly for 20 years before she saw an ad in the paper looking for a caretaker for the Balch House, which is owned by the Beverly Historical Society.

Hood has always loved antiques and thought living in the 17th-century house would be a unique experience. When she heard there were 14 other applicants, she reminded the historical society director at the time how much she wanted the job by calling him every night at 6.

?I knew he went to bed at 7,? she said.

Hood, who raised four children as a single mother after her husband died when she was 36, moved into the Balch House with her mother and youngest son. Three years later, she learned through a family genealogy that she was a direct descendant of the house?s original owner, John Balch.

Because of Hood?s presence, the Balch House is open for tours (for $5) Tuesdays through Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. from June to October, no appointment necessary.

?We could not make this house available if she was not here,? Goganian said. ?Our staff is small, and it?s very unlikely we could find somebody who would be willing to do this.?

Hood lives in two rooms on the first floor of the ?new? section of the house, which has two bedrooms on the second floor. That section is heated, unlike the oldest part of the house. Hood said she once brought a bowl of water upstairs in the old section and it froze in an hour.

Hood recently gave a tour to a woman who had lived in the Balch House in 1940. The woman told her that the house?s only closet used to be an icehouse.

At 88, Hood gets around well enough to climb the steep stairs to the second floor. She shows the bedroom where David Balch reportedly saw three witches before he died.

In the other bedroom, she grabs a wooden ?key? and demonstrates how to tighten a bed made of ropes. When it?s time to clean the sheets, which date to around 1750, she takes them to the laundromat.

?I love it,? she said of her caretaker role. ?I like old houses, and I met a lot of people in 42 years.?

Saturday?s tribute to Hood is part of a weekend of activities by the Beverly Historical Society called the Old Planters Reunion and Balch Family Meeting. Descendants of the Balch family and Beverly?s other 17th-century families are invited. The weekend will include a trolley tour focusing on the witchcraft era, a walking tour of early Beverly, an exploration of North Beverly cemetery and tours of First Period homes.

Robin Balch Hodgkins, a Balch descendant from Scituate who plans to attend, said Hood?s commitment and dedication to the Balch House means a lot to members of the Balch family.

?You have to have somebody living there and taking care of it. It can?t be left empty,? Hodgkins said. ?She truly has presented our story and preserved the home and our heritage.?

Staff writer Paul Leighton can be reached at 978-338-2675 or pleighton@salemnews.com.

Source: http://www.salemnews.com/local/x964641450/Caretaker-makes-historic-house-a-home

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