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NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) OMB No. 1024-0018 RECEIVED 2280 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form 412 OCT: 2 4 2002 AL. KEGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACE ATIONAL PARK SERVIO This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations for individual properties and districts. See instructions in How to Complete the National Register of Historic Places Registration Form (National Register Bulletin 16A). Complete each item by marking "x" in the appropriate box or by entering the information requested. If any item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not applicable." For functions, architectural classification, materials, and areas of significance, enter only categories and subcategories from the instructions.
Place additional entries and narrative items on continuation sheets (NPS Form 10-900a). Use a typewriter, word processor, or computer, to complete all items. 1. Name of Property historic name. Clovis Robert Block other names/site number_ 2. Location street & number_ 338-348 Main Street ._ not for publication city or town Holyoke -vicinity state Massachusetts code_MA county_Hampden _ code_013 _ zip code _01040 3. State/Federal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1986, as amended, I hereby certify that this nomination - nationally - statewide Elocally.
(O See continuation sheet for additional comments.) Brona Simon Signature of certifying official/Title Brona Simon, Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer Massachusetts Historical Commission 10/23/02 Date State or Federal agency and bureau In my opinion, the property meets does not meet the National Register criteria. ( See continuation sheet for additional Comments.) Signature of certifying official/Title Date State or Federal agency and bureau 4. Natlonal Park Service Certification 1, hereby certify that this property is: entered in the National Register - See continuation sheet. - determined eligible for the National Register - See continuation sheet. - determined not eligible for the National Register - removed from the National Register - other (explain): Ta t Beell Date of Action 12/5/02 CLOVIS ROBERT BLOCK Name of Property 5.
Classification Ownership of Property (Check as many boxes as apply) x private - public-local - public-State _ public-Federal HAMPDEN, MASS. County and State (Check only one box) x building(s) _ district _ site structure - object Number of Resources within Property (Do not include previously listed resources in the count. Contributing Noncontributing 1 0 _building sites structures objects Total 1 Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register NONE Name of related multiple property listing (Enter "N/A" if property is not part of a multiple property listing.) N/A 6. Function or Use Historic Functions (Enter categories from instructions) COMMERCE: stores DOMESTIC: multiple dwelling Current Functions (Enter categories from instructions) VACANT 7.
Description Architectural Classification (Enter categories from instructions) Materials (Enter categories from instructions) foundation_STONE wallsBRICK SHEET METAL roof_ASPHALT other Narrative Description (Describe the historic and current condition of the property on one or more continuation sheets.) See attached continuation sheets. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page - 1 Clovis Robert Block Holyoke (Hampden), MA DESCRIPTION The Clovis Robert Block is a single-building nomination of a four-story mixed use commercial block at the corner of Main and Cabot Streets in the South Holyoke neighborhood. It was designed by noted Holyoke architect George P.B. Alderman in 1881, and expanded under Alderman's direction in 1888.
The Robert block is four stories tall, faced in common red brick with yellow cast stone trim finished to imitate tooled sandstone. The Main Street elevation is highly detailed with a broad copper bay set between two masonry flanks and topped by.a classical-style pressed metal cornice. (photo #1) The simpler elevation on Cabot Street maintains the brick wall and cast stone details, topped by a continuation of the pressed metal cornice. (photo #2) Originally the building contained two street-level storefronts at 74 and 78 Cabot Street, and three storefronts on Main Street (listed as 338, 342, and 346 Main Street). The three upper floors contained apartments for fifteen families, accessed from the street by three separate stairhall entries at 76 Cabot Street and 340 and 348 Main Street.
The footprint of the Robert Block follows the lot line of the corner parcel on three sides with no setback from the public sidewalk on Main and Cabot Streets. The exposed side wall of the building was formerly a party wall with an adjacent four-story building (ca. 1888) that subsequently burned and was demolished. (photo #1) The rear of the lot is partially open to the alley in order to provide delivery access to the commercial spaces and tenant access to the two ranks of common rear porches. (photo #2) At street level, the two primary elevations are defined by five modern commercial storefronts and three entries to the common apartment stairways. On Cabot Street, both the storefronts have been entirely reconfigured with modern brick infill extending from grade to transom, modern windows, recessed modern entries, and modern aluminum signbands.
On Main Street, the three storefronts are sheltered by the projection of a shingled pent roof overhang that supports modern back-lit signs. The corner storefront at 332 Main Street has been infilled with modern brick, an aluminum storefront door, and aluminum-framed display windows. The middle storefront at 342 Main remains a recessed entry with a wood-paneled surround, but a modern brick knew wall hides the lower third of the cast iron columns and the display windows have been replaced with modern units. The third storefront at 346 Main features a recessed entry with a modern commercial aluminum door. The cast iron columns that frame.the windows are still exposed along with remnants of a pressed metal facing that protected the paneled wood bulkhead below the windows. The tops of all the columns and the remains of the transom area are hidden behind the pent roof overhang.
The street levels entries to the three apartment stairways each consist of a single leaf door under s small transom. At 76 Cabot Street, the entry is defined by a brick arch with rusticated cast stone (continued) uano rpprater ri. 1024-0016 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet 2 Section number. Page - - Clovis Robert Block Holyoke (Hampden), MA springers and keystone. The door is a modern flush-panel door and the transom area has been blocked with plywood. At 340 Main Street, the top of the entry is concealed under the pent roof canopy. The door is a delaminated single light door with a solid panel in the transom area. At 348 Main Street, the entry is recessed with a paneled wood surround flanked on one side by a cast iron pilaster with a vine motif.
The modern single light door is set under a solid paneled transom. Above the first floor, the building is divided architecturally into rhythmic masonry bays. There are seven bays along Cabot Street with a fenestration pattern (from the alley to Main Street) of 3- 2-1-2-1-2-1, and three bays along Main Street with a fenestration pattern of 4-4-4. The shallowly-projecting middle bay on Main Street is sheathed in dull copper with eclectic details in the Queen Anne style. Both street elevations are united under a continuous brick entablature with a projecting metal cornice supported by stamped metal brackets. The primary elevation on Main Street incorporates the original 1881 section as one-third of the façade and the expansion of 188 as the remaining two-thirds.
The well-planned symmetry maintains a strong visual congruity across both periods of construction with only subtle differences between the components. Above Main Street, the most prominent architectural feature is the wide, three-story, projecting center bay in dulled copper with four windows at each upper floor. The sheet metal spandrels in the central bay are stamped in a fish-scale pattern as are the transom areas between the third and fourth floor. The copper bay terminates in an elaborate gabled molded metal cornice with dentils and modillions above a decorative metal frieze. The triangular pediment, executed in sheet metal features a prominent name block: "Clovis Robert / 1888." Projecting brick piers flanks the copper bay from second story to cornice.
The exterior masonry walls extend the depth of the Cabot Street side, wrap around the first third of the Main Street elevation, and then pick up the 1888 section beyond the center bay. The walls evatlon, aendtne are common red brick, overpainted at the first floor and heavily stained with soot above. Window openings are defined by a single continuous course of header brick running just below the cast stone window sills at each level. The tops of the windows are framed by segmental arches of glazed red brick with keystones of vermiculated yellow cast stone (imitating sandstone). Yellow cast stone strong bands connect the base of each segmented arch, adding definition to each floor. The second floor windows on Main Street provide the only variation in the 1881 design.
Instead of the usual pattern of four window openings, the first bay of the second floor is fitted with two three-part (Chicago-style) windows. The header course, cast stone sill, and cast stone band match the standard detail, but the two window openings are defined by segmented jack arches in glazed red brick with cast stone springers and keystones. (Anecdotal evidence suggests that this unit on the second floor was used as an office for the commercial space below.) . (continued) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet - - 3 Section number Page. Clovis Robert Block Holyoke (Hampden), MA Above the fourth floor windows runs a decorative brick frieze consisting of horizontal and vertical brick bands in soldier courses and toothed courses.
Scrolled metal brackets under the eaves support a deep overhang with a formed sheet metal cornice. Above the flat roofline are three brick chimneys on the Cabot Street side and two flanking the metal gable on the Main Street The rear elevation is a complex jumble of elements in multiple planes. The plain brick end wall perpendicular to Cabot Street has a double leafed entry under an arched brick transom, a single pair of windows on each floor above, and a simple metal drip edge at the roofline. The U-shaped rear section parallel to Cabot Street is hung with modern wooden porches connecting across the air space. The section parallel to Main Street is built out at grade level with an infill section of cinder block and modern brick that supports a wooden staircase to the porches above. The exterior walls along the porches are wood sheathing instead of masonry.
There is some evidence that the wood was formerly protected by pressed metal cladding, but it is now covered by sheets of modern paneling. The narrow projecting end wall of the rear elevation is scarred by evidence of an earlier adjoining building and features a single window set adjacent to the flue on the third and fourth floors. The exposed side wall of the Robert block perpendicular to Main Street is a former party wall shared with an adjacent four-story building (since demolished): (photo #1) The masonry is marked with pockets to received floor framing, thimble openings that connected stovepipes to the flue, and a whitewashed area that was probably an air shaft between the buildings. There are no windows or door openings and no evidence of a former direct connection between the Robert block and the adjacent structure. The flat roofline is capped with a simple metal drip edge.
Interior Description The interior of the Robert Block has been largely destroyed over the years as the commercial spaces were remodeled and the apartment configuration was altered. The building has been vacant for a number of years and allowed to deteriorate. Ceilings, walls, and woodwork have been heavily damaged by roof failure, water and ice, and colonies of vermin. The apartments have been trashed by squatters and walls have been demolished by vandals seeking to salvage plumbing and heating materials. The first floor commercial areas have been fully modernized with sheetrock partitions, masonite paneling, modern display windows, drop ceilings, wall-to-wall carpeting, and vinyl floor covering. Some of the interior walls have been removed to combine adjacent spaces. Other walls have been inserted to create offices and service areas. (continued) rra.
102÷-0914 United States Department of the Interior Nationai Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet 7 Section number Page. 4 Clovis Robert Block Holyoke (Hampden), MA The three interior staircases that serve the apartments above are mostly intact, but heavily vandalized and covered with multiple coats of lead paint. The stair at 76 Cabot Street (dating from 1881) is very simple and represents a typical back stair of a secondary side of the building with little architectural detail. The original main stair at 340 Main (also. 1881) is more elaborate with a broad stairhall, direct windows, paneled wainscoting, turned balusters, molded handrail, and newel posts. There is a small change in floor level connecting the stairhall to the 1888 expansion.
The third staircase at 348 Main is a simpler design, but also features turned balusters and newel posts, a molded handrail, and paneled wainscoting. Portions of the third stair are scorched and crackled from the heat of a fire in the adjacent building. Within the units, the quality and condition of finishes varies dramatically and all the interior surfaces show high concentrations of lead paint. On the Cabot Street side of the building, many of the interior walls have been completely stripped of plaster and lath and many of the ceilings have been pulled down. Virtually all of the window and door casings were pulled off during a previous remodeling and replaced with pine flat stock. On the Main Street side, some of the plaster walls remain, along with molded wood baseboards and stock windows and door surrounds from the late 19"h century.
There are a few remaining examples of singled-glazed wood window sash in 1/1, 2/2, and 6/6 configurations, but not enough to discern the original design intent. Since many of the windows are not properly sized for the frame, it is also possible that they were salvaged from other tenement properties. Apartment entries and interior doors have been destroyed throughout the building, but there are a few painted four-panel doors in the 1881 section and some five-panel doors in the 1888 section. The kitchens and baths aré demolished throughout. Unit floors, where visible under piles of debris and later coverings, are either pine boards or modern plywood. Documented Alterations Holyoke Building Department permits from 1921 to the present record very few changes to the block since its completion in 1888, although there may have been some changes without permits.
Under the first recorded permit (August 19, 1940), filed by the Estate of Emile Wilson, swinging doors were installed in the first floor vestibule at 76 Cabot Street, the principal entrance to the apartments. Under a subsequent permit in January 1969, owners Lionel and S. Nadeau, Sr. spent $75,000 to upgrade the dwelling units. The architect for that work was listed as Kennco Associates. An additional $8,000 was spent for interior apartment alterations in 1971. An interior office was remodeled with sheetrock and paneling in 1978 at a cost of $1,500 and $50 was spent the same year toreplace windows with wall" (continued) crno
1024-0016 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet 5 Section number Page - Clovis Robert Block Holyoke (Hampden), MA On the exterior, all of the storefronts were partially infilled with brick and new display windows, probably around 1969-71 when the apartments were last remodeled. On the Man Street elevation, the transom area (including the signband and cornice) was covered with a pent roof and shingled overhang. The apartment interiors show evidence of this remodeling, with sheetrock overlays and partitions, elocated passage doors, modified access patterns, and some updated heating systems.
Th ressed metal ceilings in the upstairs apartments were most likely removed at the same time (They are noted on the 1951 Sanborn Insurance map, updated to 1941.) The adjacent four story building at 350-352 Main Street (probably constructed at the same time as the expansion to the Robert block in 1888) was demolished after a fire, exposing a structural brick party wall devoid of windows on the side of the Robert block. Brick repairs were made to the upper wall and parapet on the side of the Robert block to stabilize the area after the adjacent building was demolished (ca. 1980). Current Condition The Clovis Robert Block has been vacant for many years and is in very poor condition. The general form and character of the building is intact, but many of the details are obscured or damaged. The cast stone of the 1888 section is a particular problem.
The material is crumbling and spalling throughout, while the cast stone in the 1881 section seems to have weathered much better. On Main and Cabot Streets, the street-level storefronts have been built out and heavily remodeled several times. A few of the earlier cast iron storefront details are visible along Main Street, but their condition cannot be evaluated until the later material is removed. The basic layout of the apartments and the three stairways remain intact, but the apartments are in a state of partial demolition due to deferred maintenance, long-term moisture penetration, lack of heat, multiple pigeon colonies, and rampant vandalism. Most of the window sash are missing or broken and virtually all of the interior finishes are heavily damaged. The kitchens and baths were destroyed by vandals salvaging metal plumbing pipes and fixtures.
Most of the apartment walls have been literally demolished by squatters and vandals, and all of the units have been "trashed." The two upper floors have also been heavily damaged by water pouring in from the roof and then freezing. While the condition of the Robert Block is not good, a local community development organization is proposing to rehabilitate the building in order to improve housing quality, reduce crime, and stem the decline of the neighborhood. (continued) MOOOYa ra. 1024-0016 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service Nationäl Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page - 6 Clovis Robert Block Holyoke (Hampden), MA Archaeological Description While no ancient Native American sites are recorded on the Clovis Robert Block property, sites may be present.
Six sites are located in the general area (within one mile), most along the current shoreline of the Connecticut River and its floodplain. Current and paleoenvironmental attributes of the block do not uniformly represent favorable locational characteristics (slope, soil drainage, distance to wetlands) for ancient Native American sites. The Clovis Robert Block is located on a level to moderately sloping riverine terrace. Natural soil types and characteristics in the area have been obscured or destroyed by urban development. Wetland resources, represented by the First and Second Level Canals are located within 1000 feet of the property, however, both waterways are man-made. Issues of integrity are also present that prohibit the survival of any cultural resources on the property.
Construction of the building, which has a basement and covers nearly the entire block, would have destroyed any resources that were present. Given the above information, a low potential exists for recovering both ancient Native American and historic resources on the nominated property. (end) CLOVIS ROBERT BLOCK Name of Property 8. Statement of Significance