Beacon Hill’s Oldest House

One of the stops on the 90-minute PhotoWalks Beacon Hill Tour and the 2-hour Highlights of Boston Tour is the George Middleton House. It is the oldest wooden house on Pinckney Street and in Beacon Hill. George Middleton and his friend Louis Glapion built it in 1787. The structure is typical of the style of homes constructed by African-Americans in the 18th-century.

George Middleton was a Black community leader in Boston. He led the Bucks of America, a Black militia, during the Revolutionary War. The group guarded the property of Boston merchants during the siege of the city in 1775-1776. Governor John Hancock presented the group with a company flag, which is preserved in the collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society.

Louis Glapion arrived in Boston from the French West Indies. He ran a hair salon from this home until his death in 1813. George Middleton died in 1815. Neither man had any heirs and a new owner purchased the historic home. Today, it is a private residence.