Julia Child's Former Cambridge Home Lists for $6.47 Million

Julia Child's former Cambridge, Massachusetts home, where she lived for four decades and filmed some of her iconic cooking shows, has been listed for $6.47 million. The late-19th-century residence is located just blocks from Harvard Yard.

The six-bedroom, 6,321-square-foot home at 103 Irving St. is described as a "garden-style" property, designed so that all rooms overlook the gardens, integrating the outdoors. The current sellers purchased the home in 2009 for $3.7 million.

Child, born Julia McWilliams in California in 1912, was not only a celebrated culinary figure who introduced American home cooks to French cuisine but also served as an American intelligence official during World War II. Working for General William J. Donovan, head of the OSS (the precursor to the CIA), her duties included developing a synthetic shark repellent. It was also within the OSS that she met her husband, Paul Cushing Child.

The couple moved to Paris in 1948, where Julia began her culinary studies. They returned to the U.S. in 1961 and purchased the Cambridge home. For 40 years, from 1961 to 2001, this was Child's residence, and the location where she filmed popular programs such as "In Julia's Kitchen with Master Chefs" and "Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home."

Home Features and History

The house, built in 1889, has been updated, but retains elements of its past. The listing agents, Ed Feijo and Gail Roberts of Coldwell Banker, noted that Child's plantings, including Floribunda roses, are still present in the landscaped garden. While Child's famous kitchen is now preserved at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, the current home features a renovated chef's kitchen with a pantry.

Originally, Paul Child designed the kitchen to accommodate Julia's height (6-foot-2), ensuring she could easily reach high shelves. The residence includes a grand entry leading to a large living and dining area. It also boasts a family room with French doors and a bay window, four gas fireplaces, and a primary bedroom suite with a balcony. Additional bedrooms are located on the upper floors, which also include a home office. The basement contains a gym, laundry room, and wine room.

The property is equipped with solar panels and features covered porches, a patio, and a stone wall.

Child donated the Cambridge house to her alma mater, Smith College, before moving to a retirement home in California in 2001. She passed away in 2004 at the age of 91. Her iconic kitchen was separately donated to the Smithsonian Institution.