 |
of Newport, RI
YES WE ARE OPEN!
Opened July 5th, 2019!
THE MANY LIVES OF 29 TOURO STREET
The Buliod-Moses Levy/Seixas-Perry HOUSE at 29 Touro Street.
The Buliod-Perry House is a large three-story, five-bay house with a hip roof and two interior chimneys. Located on the original site, it is one of the few remaining eighteenth-century structures on Washington Square. The build date of c.1750 is supported by a record of Peter Buliod giving to Lewis Buliod the “large new house” in 1757. Then going to:
Moses Levy and Moses Seixas House
Moses Levy and the Moses Seixas families both lived in one of Newport's large colonial mansions at 29 Touro Street. Seixas was a founding member of the nation's oldest Jewish Masonic Lodge (King David in Newport) and Grand Master of the Masonic Order of Rhode Island. Seixas was well known as the Cashier of the Bank of Rhode Island, (which operated out of this house as well.), and was President (Parnas) of Touro Synagogue at the time of the George Washington visit and letter to the congregation. Seixas also performed the Covenant of Circumcision (B’rith Milah). Prominent merchant and trader Moses Levy of New York and Newport was one of several Ashkenazi Jewish families in Newport at that time. Levy owned the Touro Street Mansion and willed the property to Moses Seixas in 1792. Levy was also one of the original benefactors of Touro Synagogue .
The Moses Levi house provided winter quarters to Pierre François de Béville, Rochambeau’s maréchal général des logis, which translates as “Quartermaster General”, who stayed here while in Newport from July 1780 to June 1781.
Benjamin Seixas (1747-1817) and numerous members of his family and members of the Spanish-Portuguese Jewish Congregation who were heirs to the property, known now as the Buliod-Perry House at 29 Touro Street, sold the house on November 30, 1818 to Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, the great naval hero of the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813 and brother to Commodore Mathew Perry.
Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry (1785-1819) was an American naval commander, the older brother of Commodore Matthew C. Perry. Perry served in the West Indies during the Quasi War of 1798-1800 against France, in the Mediterranean during the Barbary Wars of 1801-1815, and in the Caribbean fighting piracy and the slave trade; but he is most remembered for his heroic role in the War of 1812 during the 1813 Battle of Lake Erie. Supervising the building of a fleet at Erie, Pennsylvania against the British he earned the title, “Hero of Lake Erie” for leading the American forces in a decisive victory at the Battle of Lake Erie for which he received a gold medal from Congress. His leadership materially aided the successful outcomes of all nine Lake Erie military campaign victories and the victory was the turning point in the battle for the West in the War. His famous words, “Don’t Give Up the Ship” were emblazoned on his battle flag, and his message to General William Henry Harrison; “We have met the enemy and they are ours…” are two of the most famous military quotes in American history. Oliver Perry's statue stands across the street from the house. The Perry family owned the house for the next 50 years.
From there the building was turned into a market selling food and the exterior windows were changed to large display windows that could display such things as chickens/geese hanging in the window. It was called the Perry Mansion Market.
After the turn of the century the building was bought by prominent African American Newporters: J. T. and H. L. Allen who turned it into the Touro Dining Room.
In 1914, The Salvation Army bought the building as it's Headquarters for the Island. They remained here until 1973 when Doris Duke bought the property and through her Newport Restoration Foundation had the building restored to it's current state.
From the 1970's on it has been home to a variety of businesses from Architects to Doctor's offices. It is now home of Commonwealth Books of Newport.