 Click image for more information  In the 1630s the Clapp family settled in Dorchester north and west of what is now Edward Everett Square. Roger, Edward, Sarah, Nicholas, Prudence and John all came to Dorchester in those early years. The Clapps who owned the property that now belongs to the Dorchester Historical Society were descendants of Nicholas who married his cousin Sarah.
This hypothetical view by John Goff of the Clapp family farm complex in 1852 is based on maps and engravings and photos. The viewer would somehow be hovering up in the air over Boston Street looking west down Willow Court (now Enterprise Street). The Clapp tannery operations are on the left; the William Clapp House (the Society's headquarters) and its outbuildings are off to the right. The Lemuel Clap House is in the middle distance--this house has since been moved closer to Boston Street and stands next to the William Clapp House. In the far distance, the viewer sees the Clapp bark mill, supplying the tannins for the tannery operations.
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