This three-story Colonial Revival house was designed by Boston, Massachusetts architect James T. Kelley and built in 1898-99 for Captain Seth Mason Richards, a scion of one of Newport's wealthiest families.

[2] The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (as "Richards Free Library") in 1984.

Seth Mason Richards was politically active, serving in the state legislature and its Governor's Council.

His house is one of the finest examples of Colonial Revival architecture in the state, and was donated to the town as a home for the library by his daughter in 1963.

The town took great care to maintain the architectural details of the building while adapting for its new use.