WYMAN Family Reunion ~ The Descendants of Francis WYMAN (1594 - 1658)

The Francis Wyman Homestead, circa 1666, Burlington, Massachusetts

On Saturday, October 3rd, in the rain and chill, the descendants of Francis Wyman (1594 - 1658) met at the Francis Wyman homestead in Burlington, Massachusetts.  The house was built in 1666 and next year the house will be 350 years old!  If you would like to be part of the big anniversary celebration of the homestead, check the website http://wymanassociation.org/ and the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/WymanAssociation.org/    

In 1898 a descendant, Benjamin Wyman, found the homestead in a decrepit condition and founded the Francis Wyman Association to purchase the house and preserve it.  The association was incorporated in 1902 and has held reunions since 1899. 

In 1996 the house was nearly destroyed by a fire.  There were two rounds of renovation since the fire, which uncovered major structural damage inside the walls by insects and age.  The first renovation restored the outside shell of the home, funded by the Massachusetts Historical Commission, the town of Burlington, and generous descendants and others.  The second renovation restored the stairway, which made the upstairs and attic accessible.  Much more work will be required to preserve the homestead as a museum. 

The current project is to rebuild a well sweep on the lawn of the homestead.  The required archaeological dig is expensive.  Please donate to this piece of Burlington and New England history at the Wyman Association website, where you can donate online with PayPal or by mail.  The Francis Wyman Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.  Your donation is tax deductible to the extent permitted by law. 

Francis Wyman and his brother, John, originally owned about 1000 acres of land in Woburn (now in the towns of Burlington and Billerica).  The house is now located at 56 Francis Wyman Road (Route 62), Burlington, Massachusetts.  

If you would like a tour, please email tour@wymanassociation.org 

For more information  info@wymanassociation.org 

For WYMAN genealogy information, please contact Ginny Mucciaccio at ginny@wymanassociation.org or see the online database at http://www.wyman.org/genealogy-test    

More photos of the 2015 family reunion:

Damage is evident from the 1996 fire 

Architectural Preservationist John Goff explained to me
what was uncovered under the original plaster when
a door was widened for handicap access in the Wyman house.

The restored staircase, and new wall panels
that show visitors the chimney construction behind the wall

Extremely wide floor boards in an upstairs chamber

The basement stairway with timber peg construction

An old sign that used to hang in front of the Wyman homestead

Wyman Association president John C. Wyman addresses his kinfolk

The Rumford Historical Association in Woburn
gave a wonderful presentation on Rumford fireplaces

Thanks to John Goff of Salem, Massachusetts for the group photo of the Wyman Reunion

----------------------

Published under a Creative Commons License

Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "WYMAN Family Reunion ~ The Descendants of Francis WYMAN (1594 - 1658)", Nutfield Genealogy, posted October 5, 2015, ( http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2015/10/wyman-family-reunion-descendants-of.html : accessed [access date]).