James Nutter, one of the finest local builders of the period, is credited with the 1809 Portsmouth Academy building at Middle and Islington Streets. Built in 1809 and attributed to James Nutter, one of the finest local builders of the period, this two-story brick structure is celebrated as one of the finest surviving examples of an early 19th-century academic building in northern New England. Look at the cut granite foundation and the hip roof above, and notice how the original main facade faces Islington Street in a strict seven-bay rhythm.
The windows sit in rectangular openings with marble sills and splayed lintels; a marble stringcourse neatly separates the two floors, while the roof cornice is finished with dentil moulding. The center three bays project slightly, giving the front a modest, classical presence. Over the years it housed the Portsmouth Academy, later the city’s public library, and today it welcomes you as the Portsmouth Historical Society galleries, gift shop and the Discover Portsmouth Welcome Center.
The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 as “Portsmouth Public Library. Notice the marble stringcourse and dentil cornice tracing this seven-bay Federal facade.