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Above: Julia Child pictured in her Cambridge kitchen in 1972.
Julia Child’s pegboard-covered kitchen might be in the Smithsonian, but her longtime Massachusetts home—where the famed cooking space was once located—can now be yours. The late chef’s former Cambridge house just hit the market for $6.475 million.
Painted a muted shade of purple, the six-bedroom Cape Cod sits on a quarter-acre lot just a few blocks from Harvard Yard. Child and her husband, Paul, first moved to the Boston suburb in 1961, after Paul retired from his job in the federal government. The couple—who got married in 1946—were drawn to Cambridge “largely for its intellectual atmosphere,” per The New York Times.
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Julia Child lived in this Cambridge home for 40 years.
The kitchen soon became a focal point of the 6,300-square-foot home, which was originally built in 1889. Customized by both Julia and Paul, the 20-by-14-foot space featured maple countertops a few inches taller than average (to suit Julia’s 6’3” frame), along with pegboard-clad walls and a six-burner industrial Garland range. Millions of Americans would ultimately become familiar with the room, as Child filmed several TV shows there, such as In Julia’s Kitchen with Master Chefs and Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home.
After Paul’s death in 1994, Child continued to live in the residence until 2001, when she donated the property to her alma mater, Smith College. (The institution sold it in 2002 for $2.35 million, per Zillow.) The kitchen, meanwhile, was meticulously deconstructed—down to its linoleum flooring—and rebuilt in D.C.’s National Museum of American History, where it remains on display today.
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Child’s original kitchen is now in the Smithsonian, and the revamped space now features marble countertops, metallic backsplash, and Poggenpohl cabinetry.
Since then, the three-story home has been renovated, with the kitchen now sporting marble countertops, a metallic backsplash, Poggenpohl cabinetry, and a Sub-Zero refrigerator. The rest of the residence features light-filled interiors, hardwood floors, and even eco-friendly additions like solar panels.
Over the summer, the Cambridge City Council passed a proposal to install a historical marker on the estate’s grounds, according to Boston.com.
The listing follows another Child-linked home to hit the market in recent months. In August, a Santa Barbara ranch where she filmed the 12-episode PBS series Dinner at Julia’s listed for just under $22 million.
103 Irving St. in Cambridge is listed for $6.475 million with Gail Roberts and Ed Feijo of Coldwell Banker.
Geoffrey Montes is an associate editor at ELLE Decor with a serious love for all things real estate and design. Before that, he worked at Architectural Digest, Galerie, and Preservation magazines, covering everything from jaw-dropping listings to world-famous architects and design events like Salone del Mobile and Homo Faber.
Dining and Cooking