Once Owned by the Barron Publishing Family, This New England Estate Is Listed for $15 Million

Craig Cole Enterprises Co.

Ever wish walls could talk? Well, if the ones within this historic New England property built amid the site of an ancient shipyard in the 1930s for prominent financier Clarence W. Barron could speak, they most assuredly would have their share of fascinating tales to spin. Think stories of distinguished guests who have visited the storied estate at some point during its almost century-old history—presidents Calvin Coolidge, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan, just to name a few; and more recently, those walls could offer some keen insight into what it was like to serve as a backdrop for the movies Thoroughbreds and Confess, Fletch.

Originally the summer home of the Dow Jones & Co. owner and Barron’s magazine founder, who died in 1928, a Georgian-style brick mansion designed by noted architects Parker, Thomas and Rice was built anew on a peninsula overlooking Cohasset Cove on the South Shore of Massachusetts in the early 1930s by Barron’s stepdaughter, Jane Barron. The place remained in the same family until the 1982 death of Barron’s granddaughter, Jessie Bancroft Cox, after which time it eventually sold to investor Peter Roy for $2.6 million in the late 1980s.

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On and off the market in previous years, once for as much as $55 million, the compound last sold to Silicon Valley-based real estate investor Gerald Butler and his wife Judith for $12.5 million in 2018. Previously floated on the open market for $18 million in April 2023 and then removed, it’s now popped back up for sale with a newly reduced $15 million price tag. Frank Neer of Coldwell Banker Realty holds the listing.

Known as The Oaks, the 9.4-acre spread features a renovated 20,000-square-foot, 10-bedroom main residence with a roof deck, plus 4,000 square feet of outbuildings. Neatly manicured, the grounds are nestled alongside 1,800 feet of waterfront frontage and include several terraces and Jacuzzis, a swimming pool, a tennis court, a private sandy beach, and a protected 112-foot deep-water dock.

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As for the primary dwelling, it’s decked out with an elevator and numerous fireplaces. Highlights include an elegant entry foyer displaying tile floors and a curving staircase, formal living and dining rooms, a family room resting beneath a coffered ceiling, and a kitchen outfitted with an eat-in island, stainless appliances, and an accompanying breakfast nook. The primary suite flaunts a terrace and a marble-clad bath spotlighted by a soaking tub and a glass-encased shower, and elsewhere are a wood-paneled library with built-in bookshelves, a sunroom lined with French doors, and a screening room.

Click here for more photos of The Oaks estate.