Statement of Significance (as of designation - May 30, 1974):
This was the home of Julia and Abby Smith, two elderly sisters who, in 1873, protested vigorously and articulately the inequitable tax assessment of their property, Kimberley Farm. At a time when women were denied the vote, the Smith sisters refused to pay a tax without some voice in the dispositon of their money. The Smiths waged a two-year battle with local authorities, secured a legal decision against the tax collector, and in the process attracted international attention for their stand on Women's Rights.