The Islands » Newport » Washington Street and the Point » Rhode Island » Henry Knowles House Henry Knowles House Details Mid-18th-century. 31 Walnut St. (at Second St.) This two-story central-chimney gambrel with fanlighted, pedimented door was the childhood home of Matthew Galbraith Perry, future admiral, who “opened” Japan to the West. It is hence sometimes aggrandized as the Perry House. Writing Credits Author: William H. Jordy et al.