Preservationists fight to save historic General Glover House property in Swampscott
'It has important ties to right before, during, and after the American Revolution,' said Nancy Schultz, chairperson of the Swampscott Historical Commission.
They're facing an uphill battle.
Overgrown brush, broken windows, and 'No Trespassing' signs scar the former building that has been vacant since the early 1990s when famed restaurateur Anthony Athanas's family closed the restaurant.
General John Glover is a favorite revolutionary son of the North Shore.
Handout/The Boston Globe - The Boston Gl
The poor condition raises major questions about whether the house is salvageable.
'It's in very bad shape,' Schultz acknowledged. 'It needs immediate attention.'
The Glover is a final link to a celebrated figure in Massachusetts history. Marblehead
The fate of the house has been at a crossroads since about the mid-1990s, when the restaurant famous for buttery popovers and prime rib closed after serving diners since 1957.
A series of zoning changes, demolition plans, and development proposals steadily followed. An early plan to build a supermarket on the land failed. More recently, Leggat McCall Properties of Boston abandoned its proposed 140-unit condominium development, a spokeswoman confirmed.
The property is still owned by the Athanas family. Multiple attempts to reach them or their lawyer were unsuccessful.
Schultz said her organization has been 'actively reaching out' to the Athanas family, most recently about adding a tarp over the home to protect it from the weather.
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Emery Construction negotiated an access agreement with the family, to allow the tarp to be installed, Schultz said. The historical commission allocated $10,000 for the cost, she said.
'For years it had been being said that 'there's nothing left of the Glover building, it's falling into the ground, there's nothing we can do to save it, it's got to be raised,' Schultz said.
The General Glover House was part of Anthony Athanas's family of restaurants, which also included Anthony's Pier Four in Boston.
LANDERS, Tom GLOBE STAFF
Structural engineers in 2023 determined the home was 'largely intact, at least 70 percent of the framing, if not more,' Schulz said.
Some believe the Glover can be saved, while also making room for new development on adjacent land.
Charlie Patsios, a developer who is also chair of the town's housing authority, said he is interested in the property.
'Our goal is to develop the property, create housing, but also preserve the legacy, the history, what I consider to be a national treasure of General John Glover's home,' Patsios said.
Some would like to repurpose the home.
Seamus Daly, commander of
'I'd love to see artifacts from either the Revolutionary War, from the governor's life, in a place like that and in a historically correct setting, so that people could visualize how people lived back then,' Daly said.
Schultz suggested a hotel or coffee shop to boost tourism might also be good.
'We would just welcome the opportunity to work with any developer who would help us preserve this iconic piece of American history and keep the house, but turn it into something else,' she said.
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The preservation efforts have received support from several community organizations.
The Swampscott Historical Commission was awarded several grants, including $5,000 from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, $2,000 from Essex Heritage, and $6,100 from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, Schultz said in an email.
'These grant funds will be used to study options for preserving the home through viable and continuing functional operation,' she said.
The Swampscott Select Board allocated $94,000 in federal funds pandemic-era recovery funds and Save the Glover has raised over $60,000 through donations.
In December, Schultz said they secured additional funding for the Historic American Buildings Survey, allowing them to expand their research, and allocated $30,000 to Structures North for stabilization work.
'This should be obvious … that this is an American treasure worth keeping,'
said Edward Nilsson, a member of the Marblehead Historical Commission and the town's Planning Board.
Annie Harris, chief executive of Essex Heritage, a Salem-based regional preservation group, said saving the home will encourage people to appreciate the history of their town.
'These places, these historic places, or these cultural resources, are really important for the quality of life up here, and also have an economic development value to them,' Harris said.
Doug Thompson, a Select Board liaison to the Swampscott Historical Commission, said he wants a 'balance' between housing and historic preservation.
'If we don't understand and don't remember what it took to create this country and the freedoms that we have,' he said, 'we may lose them.'
Kathy McCabe of the Globe Staff contributed to this report.
Kiera McDonald can be reached at
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