WPA Archives - Page 58 of 70 - Lost New England

Willis Hall House, Springfield, Massachusetts

August 1, 2017April 4, 2017 by Derek Strahan

The house at 121 Dartmouth Terrace in Springfield, around 1938-1939. Image courtesy of the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The house in 2017:

Willis A. Hall was a paper manufacturer who, in 1888, married Emma R. Hanson. That same year, the couple moved into this house, which had just been built on Dartmouth Terrace, one of he most desirable sections of the new McKnight neighborhood. They do not appear to have had any children, and Emma died in 1895. Two years later, he remarried to Mary Walton, who was herself a widow. By 1900, they were living here with Willis’s mother Mandana and a servant.

The Halls remained here until at least the 1910 census, but the house subsequently went through several different owners. By 1925, it was owned by Dr. Robert E. Andrews, who worked as the medical director of the Fisk Rubber Company in Chicopee. He lived here with his wife Gladys and daughter Leah, and later opened his own medical practice here in the house. They were still living here when the first photo was taken, and for many years afterwards. Dr. Andrews died in 1963, and Gladys remained here until her own death in 1973.

The house has seen few changes since the first photo was taken. Like many other historic homes in the area, its exterior has been beautifully restored to its 19th century appearance, and it is part of the McKnight District on the National Register of Historic Place.

James Cowan House, Springfield, Mass

August 1, 2017April 1, 2017 by Derek Strahan

The house at 115 Dartmouth Terrace in Springfield, around 1938-1939. Image courtesy of the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The house in 2017:

This house was built in 1888 for James and Ellen Cowan, on newly-developed Dartmouth Terrace. James was a coal dealer, and at the time the McKnight neighborhood was a fashionable area for the city’s leading residents. He lived here until his death in 1897, and by 1900 Ellen was still here with her daughter Mary, along with Mary’s husband George Sessions and their infant daughter Ethelyn.

By the 1910 census, Ellen was living elsewhere in the city with Mary and George, and this house on Dartmouth Terrace was home to Edwin and Ada Collins. Edwin’s occupation was listed as a waste dealer, and he lived here until his death in 1931, seven years after Ada’s death in 1924. The house was subsequently owned by Francis Wrisley, a telephone repair man. In the 1940 census, recorded shortly after the first photo was taken, he was living here with his wife Charlotte, son Francis, Jr., and Francis’s wife Elsie.

Today, much of the McKnight neighborhood has been restored to its original appearance, including this house. The vast majority of the 19th century homes in the area are still standing, and collectively they form the McKnight District on the National Register of Historic Places.

Orlando M. Baker House, Springfield, Mass

April 6, 2017April 1, 2017 by Derek Strahan

The house at 111 Dartmouth Terrace in Springfield, around 1938-1939. Image courtesy of the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The house in 2017:

Many of the houses on Dartmouth Terrace were built in 1888, including this one at the corner of St. James Avenue. It was built for Orlando M. Baker, one of the partners in G. & C. Merriam & Co., the publishing company that later became Merriam-Webster. He was born in New York state in 1832, and moved throughout the country, including working as a school principal in Milwaukee in the 1860s. During this time, he married Abbie Walton, a Milwaukee native, and the couple had a son, Harris. They were living in Springfield by 1880, and in 1882 Orlando joined the Merriam company. He later became treasurer and, in 1904, became president of the famous dictionary publishers. In the meantime, Abbie died in 1896, and the following year Orlando married her younger sister Kate, who was 22 years younger than him. The couple lived here together until his death in 1914.

By 1920, the house was owned by Charles and Jessie Young. Charles was 69 at the time, 15 years older than Jessie, and was usually referred to in published accounts as “Colonel,” although this title was usually in quotation marks, suggesting this was not a military rank. He died in the 1920s, and Jessie lived here until her death in 1942. The 1930 census shows her living here with her brother Charles and sister Emily, and by 1940 Charles was still here, along with a live-in maid. After her death, the house appears to have been converted into three separate apartments. However, like the other historic homes on Dartmouth Terrace, it has since been restored to its former splendor, and is part of the McKnight District on the National Register of Historic Places.

Charles Hosley House, Springfield, Mass

April 6, 2017April 1, 2017 by Derek Strahan

The house at 1166 Worthington Street in Springfield, around 1938-1939. Image courtesy of the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The house in 2017:

This house is located on Worthington Street opposite the Thompson Triangle in Springfield’s historic McKnight neighborhood. It was built in 1889, the same year as the neighboring house at 1154 Worthington Street. However, the two houses are very different in architectural style, with this one being an early example of a Colonial Revival design. Its original owner was Charles D. Hosley, a jeweler who co-owned the Springfield firm of Woods & Hosley until his retirement in 1898. He lived here with his wife Harriet and their son Walter. Harriet was the daughter of prominent publisher Charles Merriam, the co-founder of the current Merriam-Webster company. Her sister, Eleanor Woods, lived in the house next door at 1154 Worthington.

Both Charles and Harriet died in 1917, and by 1920 the house was owned by Dr. William C. Hill, the longtime principal of Central and later Classical High School. He served as principal from 1910 until 1945, and lived here for many years with his wife Gertrude and their son Charles. Gertrude died in 1954, and William lived here until his death in 1964 at the age of 90. Since then, the house has remained well-preserved. The only significant difference is the lack of the enclosed porch over the entryway, which was probably not original to the house anyway. Like the hundreds of other houses in the neighborhood, it is part of the McKnight District on the National Register of Historic Places.

Eleanor S. Woods House, Springfield, Mass

April 6, 2017March 31, 2017 by Derek Strahan

The house at 1154 Worthington Street in Springfield, around 1938-1939. Image courtesy of the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The house in 2016:

The McKnight neighborhood was developed in the late 19th century, with hundreds of elegant homes that attracted some of the city’s wealthiest residents. This particular house was built in 1889 at the corner of Worthington and Clarendon Streets, opposite Thompson Triangle. Its design reflects the Queen Anne architecture of the day, and includes asymmetrical facades, an ornate chimney, and a variety of exterior materials.

Its original owner was Eleanor S. Woods, a wealthy widow whose father, Charles Merriam, had been the co-founder of the present-day Merriam-Webster company. Although a Springfield native, Woods had lived in California before moving into this house. Her husband, Colonel Samuel Woods, had been a West Point graduate and career military officer, serving in the Mexican-American War as well as the Civil War. After his retirement in 1881, the couple lived in Oakland, California until his death in 1887.

Eleanor Woods was about 50 when the house was completed. She and Samuel had no children together, but in the 1900 census she was living here with her 38 year old nephew Charles Kirkham and her 84 year old aunt Elizabeth Warriner, along with two servants. Both Charles and Elizabeth died in 1901, and Eleanor died in 1906 at the age of 66.

After her death, the house was owned by the Episcopalian diocese, and was used as the residence for the bishop. The diocese’s first bishop, Alexander Hamilton Vinton, lived here until his death in 1911. During this time, he added a chapel to the house. His successor, Thomas F. Davies, also lived here, remaining here for 20 years until the diocese sold the house in 1931.

The house subsequently underwent significant alterations, and was at one point even used as a doctor’s office. However, it has since been restored to its original splendor as a single-family home. Like the hundreds of other Victorian-era homes in the neighborhood, it is part of the McKnight District on the National Register of Historic Places.

Henry H. Skinner House, Springfield, Mass

June 21, 2019March 25, 2017 by Derek Strahan

The house at 303 Maple Street in Springfield, around 1938-1939. Image courtesy of the Springfield Preservation Trust.

The scene in 2016:

This shingle-style mansion at the corner of Maple Street and Maple Court was built sometime around the 1890s, and was the home of Henry H. Skinner, a prominent banker and businessman. His lengthy resume included serving as a director for a number of manufacturing companies and railroads, and starting in 1920 he was also the president of the Hendee Manufacturing Company, the makers of Indian motorcycles.

Henry married Gertrude Parsons in 1886, and by 1888 the couple was living nearby at 346 Maple Street, although they subsequently moved into this house in the late 1890s. They never had any children, but they were certainly not alone in the house, regularly employing multiple servants. In the 1900 census, three Irish servants lived here, and confusingly enough, all were named Mary. Gertrude died in 1907 at the age of 42, and was buried in a large plot in Springfield Cemetery, with Henry hiring the famous Olmsted Brothers, the sons of Frederick Law Olmsted, to design the landscaping. Following her death, Henry continued here on Maple Street until his own death in 1923, and was buried alongside her in their cemetery plot.

Henry’s sister Jennie inherited the house, and she lived here with her husband William A. Baldwin, an educator who had served as principal of the Hyannis State Normal School on Cape Cod. He died in 1936, and Jennie owned the property until 1951, a few years before her death in 1954. However, she does not appear to have lived in the house since the 1930s, and it seems to have been vacant by the 1940 census. It was demolished sometime before 1971, when the current apartments were built on the site. Today, the only remnant left from the first photo is the rusty fence on the right side of the property.