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David Joy House
House History
This house is located on historic “Centre Street”and was built in 1764. The builder, David Joy, came from a distinguished line of architects and builders. His grandfather built the first Town Hall and Arsenal in Boston. Descendants include Reuben Joy, who sacrificed his life fighting with John Paul Jones during the Revolutionary War. Mathew Joy was the first mate on the whaleship Essex on the ill-fated voyage that inspired Moby Dick. Another descendant, David Joy, was one of the two founders of the Atheneum (Nantucket Library). Another, Moses Joy founded the Wanacommet Water Company in Nantucket
The house is a post and beam structure with a center chimney. It has an unusual and large 4 “withe” design, original to the house. The restored front door and its surround are over 100 years old as are the windows along Centre and Ash Streets. These windows were carefully restored and show their wavy and bubbled old glass. Inside the house, the fireplaces are in their original locations and were rebuilt with 250 year old brick, brought over as ballast on ships from England. Fireplaces in the keeping room and basement were built with large beams original to the house.
The house has had an interesting past, as home to multiple Joy family members, Lizzie Coffin in 1881 (descendent of one of the founding Nantucket families), and a shoemakers’ shop located on the Ash Lane corner. An old shoe was found in a fireplace during renovation and is on display in the house. Another interesting discovery was an old half penny, dated 1798, that was found under a floorboard of the house. While exposing some sheathing on the second floor during renovation, a large length of “king’s wood” was discovered running horizontally along the wall. This 9’ long, 2” thick and 27” wide slab of old wood should not have been found in the house! All wood of this grand width size was “owned” by the King of England.
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