William James House, 95 Irving Street, Cambridge

What it is

This is a photograph of the house at 95 Irving Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts, built in 1889 and designed by architect William Ralph Emerson. It was the home of philosopher and psychologist William James.

Why it matters

James lived in this house from 1889 until his death, writing many of his major works there and receiving students and visitors. The house gives a physical sense of the setting in which James produced his influential ideas in philosophy and psychology.

Look closer

• What does the size and style of the house suggest about James's social and financial position?
• Why might a historian want to study the place where a thinker lived and worked, not just their writings?
• What can't a photograph of a house tell you about the ideas created inside it?