Anthony, David M., House
Also known as: Bay Point
Why it's listed
Bay Point is a shingled Queen Anne summer house at 98 Bay Point Avenue, set on a large waterfront property on Mt. Hope Bay in Swansea. Built in 1895 for David M. Anthony, a wealthy Fall River businessman and a founder of the Swift Meat Packing Company, it was one of the earliest summer estates on Gardners Neck. Anthony and other Fall River businessmen helped turn the neck from farmland into a residential area. The house is asymmetrical, two and three stories tall, with a hipped roof, two crossed gables, corner towers, a one-story wrap porch on the water side, and a curved gable end with a porte-cochere. Wood shingles contrast with stone at the base of a corner tower and at the porte-cochere. A two-stall garage stands on the grounds. The property was listed for its representation of the town's late 19th-century resort architecture and for its Queen Anne design, which retains good integrity. The architect, William Beattie, may have been a Fall River granite dealer of that name.
Significance in brief: The house is an example of Swansea's late 19th-century resort construction in the Queen Anne style. It was one of the earliest summer estates on Gardners Neck, built by a wealthy Fall River businessman who helped change the area from agricultural to residential. It retains integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 90000059, listed February 16, 1990. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 98 Bay Point Ave., Swansea |
|---|---|
| County | Bristol County |
| Listed | February 16, 1990 |
| Reference number | 90000059 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | William Beattie |
| Architectural style | Queen Anne |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Community Planning and Development, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Present use is as a residence; basic original fabric in excellent condition as of the form; a portion of the porch was enclosed at an unknown date. |
| Acreage | 8.6 |
| Coordinates | 41.71050, -71.20979 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 90000059.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5236886
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.