The noble Georgian mansion on Edgartown’s Main street changed hands last weekend and is now the property of Mr. and Mrs. Roger S. Robinson of Miami, Fla. The sale, which was made through Avery and Company, includes the large grounds and the furnishings. A summer house, garage, pool and orchard are among the perquisites of the place.

 

The house was purchased from John MacKenty and Henry B. Hough of Edgartown, co-owners, who had bought the property in the late spring from the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital, when it seemed destined to be sold for commercial use. Their belief was that a house so inextricably tied in with the history and golden days of Edgartown, built by its first citizen in whaling times, deserved preservation as a residence. The house had been presented to the hospital in September by Mr. and Mrs. Martin B. Faris.

 

It had been unoccupied most of the time since the death of Mr. Faris’ parents, Mr. and Mrs. William Faris, under whose ownership the place, with its three acres of land, was known as Fanwilton. A distinguished owner in the early part of this century was the late Senator William M. Butler, of Boston and Lambert’s Cove. 

 

 

Mr. and Mrs. Robinson, who have been occupying the McLaughlin house on Cummings Hill, are spending their first summer here and are fascinated with the possibilities of Island life. They plan to install heat in the house and use it as a year-round residence. They have three children.

 

They are friends of Frank B. Shutts of Miami, who founded and brought fame and esteem the Miami Herald, and Mrs. Shutts. They spent several summer vacations here, coming to the Island after Mr. Shutts had read Country editor and wanted to see for himself the charms of the Island there pictured.

 

The house the Robinsons have bought is certainly one of the most beautiful and perhaps the most imposing of all the Vineyard’s old houses. It stands on Main street, just above the Methodist church, and is flanked by lawns on either side. A house which stood next to the Mellen house when Dr. Fisher built his mansion, was torn down and the house adjoining the church was moved to the vicinity of the Harbor View Hotel, of which it became an annex. Dr. Fisher, owner of the largest candle works in the world, also owned wharves, ships, mills and land. A friend of Daniel Webster, who visited him in Edgartown, he was often host to distinguished visitors and entertained them at the Main street house. Senator Butler modernized the house in many ways and was responsible for the landscaping of the grounds.

 

When he presented the property to the hospital, Mr. Faris told the Gazette that he felt sure the trustees would see that the property, one of the town’s great assets, would be preserved.

 

Mr. and Mrs. Robinson have entered into an agreement that if at any time during the next ten years they desire to dispose of the property, they will offer it first to Mr. MacKenty and Mr. Hough.