Built in 1782, the Cotting–Smith Assembly House at 138 Federal Street is the graceful Federal‑style building facing you. Imagine the house as it was built: a Federalist clubhouse where balls, concerts, lectures, and other events gathered the town. The original architect is unknown, yet its proportions and details later attracted the hand of Samuel McIntire, who remodeled it for use as a private residence.
Picture the glitter and conversation of an evening so notable that George Washington attended a dance here. Today the building belongs to the Peabody Essex Museum and still carries that civic energy; it can be rented for special events, continuing its long life as a place for gatherings. The house is part of the Federal Street District and stands within the area listed in the National Register of Historic Places, a reminder of how this small street held big moments.
Stand close and let the woodwork, the windows, and the line of the roof connect you to those earlier assemblies and to McIntire’s later touch. Notice the Federal Street District spreading out, this house set neatly among its neighbors.