The lot for this house in Concord, Mass., was purchased by Sarah Louise Kelley, wife of sea captain William Kelley Jr. They previously lived next door in a small cottage, but mortgaged it to built this house, which was completed in 1878.

William Kelley Jr. was in charge of the Georgia ship, “City of Macon,” and also commanded the “City of Columbus,” which was wrecked on the Devil’s Bridge off Nashoun Island in Massachusetts around 1884.

Owners’ records show the house was purchased in 1892 by Emma F. Smith, although the Concord Directory lists the Kelleys here until after the turn of the century, with Emma Smith as a boarder.

Research indicates that by 1915, Captain Kelly was spending most of his time in Florida, which may explain the directory listing.

Emma Smith was a Boston teacher in Boston who was listed as the treasurer of the Concord Female Charitable Society in 1901. She lived here with her father Julius M. Smith (d. 1912) and other family members.

In 1925 she sold the house to Mabel Ballou, widow of Murray Ballou. Other people living here included Mabel’s brother-in-law, George Ballou; her children, Richard W. with his wife Flora; and Eleanor Ballou Short, with her husband Seabury T. Short and their children.

Mabel Ballou died in 1929, and left the house to daughter Eleanor Short, who owned it until 1960.