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A historic home in one of Maine’s seafaring towns known as the “City of Ships” hit the housing market for just $1 — but the buyer will have to move it, or it’ll face demolition.
General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, a shipbuilder, announced Wednesday that it is selling two residential buildings for $1 each, including the circa-1900 Deering House at 606 Washington St. in Bath, Maine.
However, the buyer must relocate the buildings to a legally permitted site by Nov. 20, 2027.
The Deering House was originally the home of Gardiner G. Deering, a prominent shipbuilder who helped cement Bath’s reputation as a major shipbuilding center in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The house is currently being used as office space, with tenants under lease through November 2027, WMTW reported.
Bath Iron Works says the buildings are being sold “as is, where is,” with no warranties of any kind.
The buyer will be responsible for “all relocation costs, including permits, approvals, licensed structural movers, transportation, site prep, foundations, utilities, and related services.”
The Deering House will be demolished to make room for a new Bath Iron Works facility if no buyers step in to save the historic residence.
“It’s important for General Dynamics and Bath Iron Works to continue to be able to grow as a company and employ thousands of Mainers. We’re looking for ways to improve our facilities,” Jolene Nickerson, director of facilities capital at Bath Iron Works, said, WMTW reported.
“The hope is that there is somebody that has a viable lot to move this to, and that it’s financially feasible for somebody who is interested in the house to relocate it and preserve the historic nature, which the community is very excited about,” Nickerson added.
Bath was once known as the “City of Ships,” and ranked third in the US in wooden-hulled vessel production in 1854, behind New York City and Boston, according to the city’s government website.
Deering built 99 vessels during his career and operated a shipyard along the Kennebec River that helped make Bath a leading center of wooden shipbuilding before the Civil War ended the boom and “changed. the face of the industry.”
Jack Martin, archivist and special collections librarian at the Patten Free Library, said saving the house would give its new owner a unique piece of Bath history.
“You would have a one-of-a-kind home and a great story,” Martin said, according to WMTW.
“Not only do you have the history of the house that comes with it, then you also have the story of being the person who moved and saved a historic home — and that’s fascinating.”
Bath Iron Works said it has already received several inquiries about the buildings.
The idea of moving a historic Maine house is not unprecedented.
In May, a 6,200-square-foot, three-story house designed by architect John Calvin Stevens in 1899 was moved about one-third of a mile through Augusta, the Kennebec Journal reported.
The 120,000-pound building was split into two sections and transported to a new lot — with the overall project costing more than $500,000.
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