"This is the oldest edifice of brick in Portsmouth. It was built in 1718-23, at an expense of 6,000 pounds, by Capt. Archibald Macpheadris, a rich merchant and member of the King’s Council. He married a daughter of the first Governor Wentworth, and died in 1729. The huge elk antlers that still hand in the hall were given to Capt. Macpheadris by his friends the Indians. His daughter Mary married Jonathan Warner in 1754, and from the latter the house takes its name. Mrs. Warner was also a member of the Royal Council until the Revolution. He lived here until a good old age, but leaving no children the house passed into possession of his great-nephew, Col. John N. Sherburne, a cousin of Judge Sherburne.

"The brick for the construction of this house was brought from Scotland—the original bills for the materials are still in possession of the family. It is an elegant specimen of the architecture of the last century, and is rich in memorials of old times. The frescoes in the great hall are by the hand of an unknown artist; and having been papered over, were forgotten for generations, being accidentally discovered about forty years ago. The lightning rod, probably from the front door, at the corner of Sheafe and Chapel streets, stood formerly adjacent to the mansion, being the slave quarters."

Excerpted from The Portsmouth Guide Book, 1896, by Sarah Haven Foster.

Inscription reads, "Warner House, Daniel St., 1718."