Welcome to the 17th Century

In the event that we already have a guest checking out on the day you are checking in, or checking in on the day you are checking out we will need to adjust the check-in or check-out time by one hour to allow sufficient time for the Housekeeper.


Built in 1677 the Major Thomas Fenner House is the oldest home in the Providence Plantations and one of the few original “stone-enders” in existence. The 2400 sqft 4 BD 2 BA home sits on 3 acres of land siding to Stone Pond. When you head up Stony Acre Dr. turn down the long driveway just before the stop sign. You will be leaving a 1970s residential neighborhood to discover a tranquil setting among ancient trees bringing you back to a time of early colonial Rhode Island.

The 5th "bedroom" is not a true bedroom. It has no door and guests in bedrooms #3 and #4 pass through it to reach the bathroom.

The home was built a few months after King Phillips War in which the settlers homes were burned to the ground. Originally built as a 2 ½ story 18.5” x 18.5” post and beam frame home on a field stone foundation with a massive stone fireplace. The original fire room, sleeping chamber, attic and basement are very much as they were built. In the 1700s additions were added to the south and west and in the 1920s a dormer was put on giving it a Salt Box style and an indoor bathroom.

The home served as a residence, court, meeting house and tavern. Google Major Thomas Fenner Bear to see his original recipe for beer.

The Home was entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 1990 and is the jewel of early Rhode Island homes.

The current owner brought the home back into the Fenner Family in 2006 after a 90 year hiatus with the mission of continuing its preservation for another 330 years. In 2015 the owner decided to make the property available as a vacation rental to help it support itself and to allow the public and architectural and historical scholars greater access to the home. The home is furnished with antiques, period, reproduction furniture and colonial in style. The furnishings provide the ambiance of a historic home while still providing it's guests a comfortable stay with the modern amenities (indoor plumbing, four flat screen TVs wifi and alarm system), that don't interfere with the home's historic nature. Keep in mind this home may have been five star when built, but rustic is a better description today.

Among the architectural wonders of the house is the massive field stone chimney on the north side of the house which is why these homes are known as “stone-enders”. The attic window to the left of the chimney is the size of the original windows which had triangular panes of glass imported from England. The post and beam construction is of old growth virgin timbers. Check out the size of summer (wood beam over fireplace) by opening the door to the utility room and looking up to your left. This is also where the switch to the spot light that illuminates the fireplace is located. The fireplace is 10 feet wide and over 5 ½ feet tall. To open and close the flue push up and pull down the metal bar visible on the right hand side of the fireplace. The granite beneath, in front of and siding fireplace is the original kitchen. A heavy metal bar can be seen by looking up the chimney. This was used to hang pots to cook as well as three legged pots sitting in the coals such as the one in the back left hand side of the fireplace. You can see the shallow beehive oven in the back of the chimney which fell out of fashion as a result of too many women catching their dresses on fire while cooking. The large floor joists which can be seen in the basement were placed only 5 inches apart and those joists are given the credit for the home still standing in it's 4th century years. In the attic can be seen the distinctive scars of lumber which has been “pit-sawn”.

It was a new England tradition to gift newlyweds two sugar maples to plant in their backyard so they would have maple sugar for life. The maple trees behind the house were likely planted in the 2nd half of the 19th Century. The pantry next to the breakfast nook has been moved from the left of the main fireplace, but it is the original 1677 pantry.


As you can imagine a home of this age has some features unique to what guests might be used to. Some doorways are low, thresholds are high, steps are steep, and cracks in the 1677 wide plank flooring would make high heels a nightmare. A 1929 Elmsford gas stove is the centerpiece of the kitchen. The cook top has an open pilot, so do not place anything flammable of top of the stove. The controls for the oven are on the right hand side of the stove.