WPA

The house at 66 Dartmouth Street in Springfield, around 1938-1939. Image courtesy of the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The house in 2017:

This house was built in 1887 for businessman James A. Bill, Jr. and his wife Ella. Their only child, Raymond, was born a year later and grew up in this house. James was originally from Lyme, Connecticut, and as a young man he worked on board a steamboat that operated on the Connecticut River between Old Saybrook and Hartford. Despite living in Connecticut, his parents were apparently southern sympathizers, because three of his brothers, born before and during the Civil War, were named Kansas Nebraska Bill, Lecompton Constitution Bill, and Jefferson Davis Bill.

James Bill came to Springfield in 1875, first working for the Connecticut Central Railroad before becoming bookkeeper for the Union Envelope Company and the National Papeterie Company. He later became treasurer and manager of National Papeterie, but subsequently left the stationery business and became secretary, treasurer, and general manager of the Springfield Knitting Company. All three of the companies that he worked for in Springfield were owned, at least in part, by prominent businessman and philanthropist Nathan D. Bill. Like James, Nathan Bill’s family was also from southern Connecticut, although the two do not appear to have been related.

Aside from his business career, James Bill was also involved in local politics, serving on the city’s common council for five years and on the school board for three years. He lived here in this house until his death in 1909, and Ella and Raymond continued living here for a few more years. Raymond graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1910, and he soon went into business for himself, establishing Raymond R. Bill & Co., a Springfield-based heating company.

By the early 1920s, the house had been sold to real estate and insurance agent George S. Lampson, who lived here with his wife Henrietta and their children. They were still living here by the 1930 census, but they moved out at some point soon after. The house does not appear to be listed in the 1940 census, which was done only a year or two after the first photo was taken, so it is possible that the house was vacant at this point. Also, there appears to be a good amount of peeling paint in the first photo, suggesting that the house was probably in need of maintenance.

In the years after the first photo was taken, the exterior was covered in asbestos shingles, a popular material in the mid-20th century. However, the house was restored in the 1980s, with wooden clapboards replacing the shingles, and it now has a paint scheme that highlights the Victorian-era details. Along with the surrounding homes in the neighborhood, it is part of the McKnight Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.

The house at 80 Dartmouth Street in Springfield, around 1938-1939. Image courtesy of the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The house in 2017:

This house was built in 1891, and was originally the home of merchant Henry S. Safford and his wife Jessie. Born in Springfield in 1839, Safford had spent most of his career in the business world, but during the Civil War he worked for the War Department in Washington, D.C., where he was also inadvertently involved in the aftermath of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. In 1865, he was living in the Petersen House, a boarding house located directly across the street from Ford’s Theatre. On the night of the assassination, he heard a commotion on the streets, and after going outside to investigate he saw men carrying the wounded president. He directed them into the boarding house, and Lincoln was carried into a first floor bedroom, where he died a few hours later.

Aside from his connection to one of the most significant events in 19th century American history, Safford seems to have had a relatively unremarkable life. During the 1880 census, he was still living with his parents at their home on Central Street, and he did not marry until 1887, when he was 47 years old. When he and Jessie moved into this house a few years later, they were among the many upper middle class Springfield residents who purchased homes in the newly-developed McKnight neighborhood. They were still living here during the 1900 census, but by 1906 they had moved to an apartment on State Street. Henry was among the last living people with a connection to the Lincoln assassination, and he lived in Springfield until his death in 1917 at the age of 77.

In 1906, the house was purchased by Seth H. Barlow, a real estate broker. He and his wife Bertha had been married a few years earlier, and they went on to raise their three children here. Aside from his real estate business, Seth was a fire insurance agent, and he also served on the city’s Common Council for most of the 1910s. He and Bertha were living here when the first photo was taken, and they remained here until 1951, when they sold the house. Since then, the house has remained in excellent condition. In 1976, it became a part of the McKnight Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places, and in 2013 the current owners received the Edward SIms Award for Stewardship from the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The house at 96 Dartmouth Street in Springfield, around 1938-1939. Image courtesy of the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The house in 2017:

This house was built in 1886 as the home of Lemuel and Josephine Brigham. Lemuel was originally from Vermont, but in 1836 he came to Chicopee, where he worked as a superintendent at the Dwight Manufacturing Company until 1868. He then took a position as agent for the Ludlow Manufacturing Company, where he worked until his retirement in 1887. Upon his retirement, he and Josephine moved into this house, but they only lived here for a few years. She died in 1889, and about a year later Lemuel moved to Palmer, where he died in 1896.

By the 1900 census, the house was owned by clothing merchant Charles E. Cooley and his wife Mary. In 1912, at the age of 64, Charles was injured in a fall here at home, and he died two weeks later at Springfield Hospital. However, his death certificate does not mention the fall, instead listing diabetes as his cause of death. Afterwards, Mary continued to live here until her own death in 1916.

Subsequent owners of the house included insurance executive Charles W. Gowan, who lived here with his wife Ella and his mother-in-law, Elizabeth Mason. They were living here during the 1930 census, but by the time the first photo was taken less than a decade later, the house was the home of William and Mildred Lippman and their three children. At the time, William was a manager at Westinghouse, and he would eventually go on to become the vice president of the Westinghouse Elevator Division.

By the late 1940s, the house was sold to Oscar Y. Gamel, a school administrator who served as principal of Chestnut Junior High School and, later on, as principal of the High School of Commerce. He lived here until his death in 1958. Since then, the house has remained well-preserved, with hardly any difference in its appearance between the two photos. Like the many other historic late 19th century homes in the neighborhood, it is now part of the McKnight Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.