The view of the seaside front porch at 53 Rachel Carson Lane in Wells:

This oceanfront retreat on Wells Beach suits a legend.

By Colin W. Sargent

When young William S. Nutter, 30, invented Palm Beach cloth in 1908, he ruled the world. Suddenly, swells across the globe craved white dinner jackets tailored from Nutter’s patented “tropical weight mohair-cotton blend” fabric.

Remember Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca? This summer, The Met is breathless in its description of the iconic suit in its costume collection: “The washable suit was comfortable to wear, and the Palm Beach suit became the staple of the well-dressed man’s summer wardrobe.”

The clamor for Nutter’s invention must have dizzied him. He needed the perfect contemplative retreat. For a breath of fresh air, he acquired this romantic six-bedroom oceanfront house on Wells Beach in 1909 and lived here with his wife Beatrice Rice Nutter, then 32. Fifty-three Rachel Carson Lane must have satisfied the scientist in William. If you swing a compass, this is the closest line from the Goodall Worsted mills in Sanford to the boom of the surf.

Read more about our house of the month in the digital magazine above.