Waterhouse House - Cambridge, MA - Massachusetts Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

In Cambridge, facing Cambridge Common, is the Waterhouse house, which has a historical marker firmly attached to a white picket fence in front of a house.

The building is located along Waterhouse Street, near the intersection with Garden Street. The plaque is located near the gate to the front entrance.

The plaque is oval in shape and is colored blue. On the plaque is the following text:

"Waterhouse House

Built by patriot Gideon Frost
Home of Benjamin Waterhouse
1st Harvard professor of medicine
Introducer of smallpox vaccine
1753"

I found a mention of Gideon Frost in a document that designated the Third Congregational Church in Cambridge as a historical landmark. In the report, there were several references to Frost and his sons about land purchases, including the lot that the church stands on. In this document has the following statement

"Gideon Frost (1724-1803) was the archetype of the respected Yankee farmer and town leader, whose death in 1803 foreshadowed Cambridge’s transition to a suburban community. A selectman for six years and a deacon of the First Parish for twenty, his life was little different
from those of his forbears: prominent in town affairs but isolated from the college and from Boston, and deeply embedded in relations with other old families like the Coopers. His real estate activities, while more extensive than most, were typical for 18th century husbandmen, who accumulated land for its agricultural value and as a legacy for their descendants, rather than for its development potential. Frost’s children were the first generation that could capitalize on the social and economic opportunities presented by the opening of the West Boston Bridge, and his grandchildren either completed the transition from rural to mercantile pursuits or sought better agricultural opportunities in the west. "

Source:

www2.cambridgema.gov (Prospect Church Final Report):
(visit link)

Benjamin Waterhouse apprenticed with a doctor at age 16, then studied medicine in Eurupe, including the University of Edinburgh Medical School and Leiden University. In 1792, he joined the new Harvard University Medical School as one of three faculty members and also became a fellow of Rhode Island College (now Brown University). Around 1800, Waterhouse promoted Jenner's method to use the Cowpox virus as a vaccine against Smallpox. His first inoculations were his four children and then he had a control experiment with other children.

Source:

Wikipedia (Benjamin Waterhouse):
(visit link)

Agency Responsible for Placement: Other (Place below) Agency Responsible for Placement (if not in list above): Cambridge Historical Commission County: Middlesex City/Town Name: Cambridge Year Placed: Not listed Relevant Web Site: Not listed

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