Hill-Woodman-Ffrost House; Three Chimneys Inn and ffrost Sawyer Tavern

Overlooking the Oyster River, this historic inn dates back to 1649 when Valentine Hill and his partner Thomas Beard were granted a tract of land to develop a sawmill to produce lumber for the shipping industry. Valentine built this home, which began as a single-story structure with a basement. The home was expanded in 1699 by Nathaniel Hill, the son of Valentine, who expanded the structure in the early 19th century, architect Jacob Odel who is interned in the adjacent graveyard, further expanded the structure and designed the current Federal-style facade. In the early 20th century, the home was converted into a summer retreat complete with a tennis court and what might be the region's first swimming pool. With the growth of the University of New Hampshire, the home was restored and remodeled to serve as an inn for travelers.

Boston merchant Valentine Hill arrived in what would later become Durham in 1649 for the purpose of establishing a mill. He was soon granted five hundred acres and built the foundation of this home overlooking the Oyster River. The inn's tavern, which is open to the public, is located in the basement which is original to the home, and is centered around the summer kitchen fireplace. Guests check in to the current inn on the first floor of the original home which is also used for breakfast thanks in part to improvements and enlargements made by Nathaniel Hill. The inn also includes rooms in the former carriage house, which was constructed in the 18th century and completely renovated in the 1990s when the building was converted from rental housing to an inn.

Hill's home is the oldest structure in the area and the first building mentioned in the National Register of Historic Places Nomination form completed as part of the city's work to research and share the community's history in the 1980s. According to that form, the Valentine home was joined by a few other buildings in the next few years, and by 1655, the small community included several homes and a garrison for defense. The community was originally known as Dover, but in 1732, New Hampshire's colonial government officially recognized the settlement as the town of Durham. The community grew rapidly, and according to local legends, this home was used to store munitions during the American Revolution. The property passed to Jonathan Woodman who married into the family. Woodman deeded the property to George ffrost around the turn of the 18th century and the Frost family owned the property until the 1980s. Following years of use as a rental property, the original home and carriage house both faced the potential of demolition, and a developer planned on using the land for condominiums. With financial support to restore the house for use as an inn, and with the work of area preservationists, the home was saved and restored.

Our History, Three Chimneys Inn. Accessed February 26th, 2023. https://www.threechimneysinn.com/pages/history.

Interview of Karen Meyer, General Manager for Three Chimneys Inn, conducted by David Trowbridge March 1, 2023.

"Durham Historic District," United States Department of the Interior, Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service, National Register of Historic Places, Inventory Nomination Form.