Nomination for Albree-Hall-Lawrence House

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

Form No. 10-300 (Rev. 10-74) DATA SHEET UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE FOR NPS USE ONLY NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM RECEIVED APR 6 1976 DATE ENTERED APR 30 1976 1 2 3 4 5 SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN HOW TO COMPLETE NATIONAL REGISTER FORMS TYPE ALL ENTRIES -- COMPLETE APPLICABLE SECTIONS NAME HISTORIC Albree-Hall-Lawrence House AND/OR COMMON Same LOCATION STREET & NUMBER 353 Lawrence Road CITY.

TOWN Medford STATE Massachusetts CLASSIFICATION CATEGORY _DISTRICT X BUILDING(S) -STRUCTURE SITE _OBJECT OWNERSHIP _PUBLIC X_PRIVATE __BOTH PUBLIC ACQUISITION - IN PROCESS -BEING CONSIDERED - VICINITY OF CODE 025 STATUS X OCCUPIED _UNOCCUPIED WORK IN PROGRESS ACCESSIBLE - YES: RESTRICTED -YES: UNRESTRICTED XNO _NOT FOR PUBLICATION CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT Seventh COUNTY Middlesex CODE 017 PRESENT USE AGRICULTURE _MUSEUM _COMMERCIAL _PARK _EDUCATIONAL XPRIVATE RESIDENCE .ENTERTAINMENT _RELIGIOUS GOVERNMENT -SCIENTIFIC _INDUSTRIAL -TRANSPORTATION _MILITARY _OTHER: OWNER OF PROPERTY NAME Melville T. Nichols STREET & NUMBER 353 Lawrence Road CITY. TOWN Medford STATE Massachusetts 02155 VICINITY OF LOCATION OF LEGAL DESCRIPTION COURTHOUSE. REGISTRY OF DEEDS,ETC. Middlesex County Registry of Deeds STREET & NUMBER 208 Cambridge Street CITY.

TOWN Cambridge 6 REPRESENTATION IN EXISTING SURVEYS STATE Massachusetts TITLE Inventory of the Historic Assets of the Commonwealth HABS (MASS-246) DATE 1974; 1935 DEPOSITORY FOR SURVEY RECORDS CITY. TOWN XFEDERAL XSTATE COUNTY _LOCAL Massachusetts Historical Commission; Library of Congress Boston; washington, DC STATE Massachusetts 02108 7'DESCRIPTION CONDITION EXCELLENT *GOOD FAIR -DETERIORATED RUINS _UNEXPOSED CHECK ONE _UNALTERED XALTERED CHECK ONE X_ORIGINAL SITE _MOVED DATE. DESCRIBE THE PRESENT AND ORIGINAL (IF KNOWN) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

Description of the property

The Albree-Hall-Lawrence House is a two-story timber frame house of irregular plan re- sulting from its several periods of construction. Examination of the structure suggests that the earliest section, built before 1785 according to the Historic American Buildings Survey, was a two-story center chimney house, one room deep, now surviving as the rear ell of the present house. Historical sources suggest that this ell could have been part of an earlier house that was moved to this site and joined to the front section. The front section appears to have been constructed in the late eighteenth century and origin- ally was one bay deep and three bays long. The facade was then symmetrical with an en- trance porch and one window on either side.

Sometime around the turn of the eighteenth century the east wall of the front section was extended about five feet eastward, and a fourth window was added to the front facade. Between 1830-1840 the north half of the house's east end was enlarged to the present two room depth. All other ells and the al- terations of the stable were carried out after 1930 when the property was purchased by the father of the present owner. The two-story yellow clapboarded front section is set on a foundation of granite blocks except at its northeast corner where one bay of the east wall and two bays of the north wall are set on slate foundation. The front facade is four bays wide, irregularly spaced with twelve-over-twelve windows, all with black louvred shutters, and an enclosed entrys porch with a half hip roof.

The entry is framed by two pilasters supporting a plain entablature and a boxed cornice at the porch's eave. The doorway consists of five pane sidelights set over single raised panels flanking a six panel door (ca. 1930.) The east endwall has three twelve-over-twelve windows spaced unevenly across the first story, two . at the second story, and one centered in the gable. The southern two windows on the first story, one on either side of the interior chimney, and the southern window on the second story have frame moldings matching those on the front facade, while the other window moldings are of a low profile type popülar in the 1830's and 1840's. The original one room depth of the section is revealed by this change of details and the change in foundation materials.

The rear wall of the front section, where it is not concealed by additions has one twelve-over-twelve window set in a frame of low profile molding slightly east of center on both stories. The front section is covered by a medium high pitched roof with gables at the end walls. At its junction with the rear ell the gable of the west wall has a slight "saltbox" effect to join it to the lower story height of the ell. The front section has an interior chimney on the south bay of its east wall, and another rising through the ridge and centered above the facade's westernmost bay. Both are set on stone bases instead of the usual brick arch. The rear ell is adjoined to the northwest corner of the front section flush with the west wall.

It is a rectangular two-story structure with a pitched roof set perpendicular to the main roof.:As in the front section the bays, three in number, are spaced unevenly. The first story contains two twelve-over-twelve windows and to the rear a narrow doorway consisting of a molded frame supporting a cap and framing in a three pane transom and six sunken panel door (ca. 1930). At the second story the three bays are eight-over- twelve windows. North and west of this side entrance is a one-story addition with one twelve-over-twelve window set on a concrete block foundation, connecting with the stable. On the ell's east wall at its junction with the rear wall of the front section is a square plan two-story addition (ca. 1940) with a flat roof. It has a four pane light set high on 1930 continued Form No. 10-300a (Rev.

10-74) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM FOR NPS USE ONLY RECEIVED DATE ENTERED APR 6 1976 APR 301976 CONTINUATION SHEET ITEM NUMBER 7 PAGE 1 #7: the first story east wall and one narrow six-over-six light at the second story north wall. At the first story is an enclosed porch with three pairs of twelve pane doors facing east and one twelve-over-twelve window on the north. The north end of the ell is concealed by a number of additions which connect it to the stable, which has been converted to a garage (ground floor) and a studio (first floor). This stable is two stories high with a pitched roof running at right angles to the roof of the ell. Connecting it and the rear ell is a one-story porch, enclosed by vertical slats.

The previously described addition to the west wall of the rear ell provides interior access to the studio. by yellow shingles. Its west wall has a massive exterior chimney (ca. 1930) flanked at the second story by two six pane casement windows. caseaone Minlortertior Chimoy toa.: 1950) ankog 1 8

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

SIGNIFICANCE PERIOD -PREHISTORIC -1400-1499 -1500-1599 -1600-1699 X1700-1799 X 1800-1899 -1900- AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE -- CHECK AND JUSTIFY BELOW ARCHEOLOGY-PREHISTORIC _COMMUNITY PLANNING _LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE -ARCHEOLOGY-HISTORIC _CONSERVATION _LAW AGRICULTURE -ECONOMICS - LITERATURE X_ARCHITECTURE - EDUCATION XMILITARY ART -ENGINEERING _MUSIC -COMMERCE X_EXPLORATION/SETTLEMENT _PHILOSOPHY -COMMUNICATIONS LINDUSTRY _POLITICS/GOVERNMENT -INVENTION _RELIGION _SCIENCE _SCULPTURE -SOCIAL/HUMANITARIAN _THEATER -TRANSPORTATION _OTHER (SPECIFY) SPECIFIC DATES pre-185; 1830-1840 Rl BUILDER

Statement of significance

/ARCHITECT STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE In 1720 John Albree, an English immigrant, purchased from Parcival Hall a thirty-two acre tract of land containing at least one dwelling house, outbuildings, and a mill in which Hall retained a one quarter interest. By 1777, when his grandson John took over the prop- erty, the acreage totaled sixty-seven acres. Previous to his ownership Albree served in the Revolution in two different regiments, and also contributed financially to its support. The property remained in the Albree family until 1799 when John's brother Samuel sold the property, then containing seventy-two acres, to Nathaniel Hall. Suffering from financial reverses, Hall mortgaged and then deeded the property to his brother-in-law Peter Chardon Brooks. In 1817 Brooks made a gift of the property to his sister Joanna Hall, Nathaniel's wife.

In 1819 Hall had moved from his house in Medford Square to the farm, th which, in 1831, his grandson, Francis Parkman was seat to'recover from an illness. During his four years in Medford, Parkman attended John Angier's school which Parkman thought to be of "high but undeserved reputation." It seems possible that the enthusiasm of Parkman's father for the work of Alexander Jackson Davis may have influenced Angier's later choice of Davis as the architect for his home at 129 High Street, Medford. Both the historian Parkman and his several biographers place great importance on his "exploration" of the Middlesex Fells as a major influence on Parkman's writing and point of view. In the mid-nineteenth century the house was owned by Peter C. Hall, whose heirs leased the property to a pig farmer.

Offended by this use of the property, Samuel Lawrence pur- chased the farm by 1889 and incorporated it into his neighboring estate. Lawrence, Med- ford's most prominent citizen of the period, gave the use of the house to his property manager and kept the grounds open to the public on Sundays. Believing that he was better able to provide for the preservation of his more than two hundred acres of the Fells, Lawrence did not leave the property to the Middlesex Fells Reservation on his death, re- sulting in its subdivision in the 1920's. During the development of the land, the house was used as a real estate office, until an offer to purchase was made around 1927 by the father of the present owner. Both the lack of clear reference points on the early deeds and the many changes that have been made to the house make it difficult to determine the structure's history. Surveyed by H.A.B.S.

and attributed a construction date of "pre-1785, " the bulk of the house's fromt section and rear ell seem clearly eighteenth century. It is possible that the rear ell may contain the house which stood on the property around 1720 or it may be a house constructed by John Albree prior to 1785. It seems likely that the front section of the house was constructed in the last half of the eighteenth century, while the extension of the east wall of the front section probably occurred under the joint ownership of John and Samuel Albree or of Nathaniel Hall. Of Medford's less than twenty pre-1800 buildings, the Albree-Hall-Iawrence House is clearly one of the best preserved examples of its period.

The rest of the file

Bibliography, boundary description, and the people who prepared and reviewed the nomination.

MAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES Farnham, Charles H. A Life of Francis Parkman. Boston: Little, Brown, 1900. Jacobs, Wilbur R. Letters of Francis Parkman. Norman: University of oklahoma Press, 1960. Gallagher, Mark E., Jr. "The Lawrence Farm and Farmhouse." Medford Historical Register, XXXVI, No. 3 (September 1933), 33-41. Middlesex County Registry of Deeds.

10 GEOGRAPHICAL DATA ACREAGE OF NOMINATED PROPERTY - 20,980 square feet (* acre) UTM REFERENCES A1L,91 590 1312,514,2,0 ZONE EASTING 14,619,819,0,01 NORTHING VERBAL BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION BLiJ EASTING NORTHING NORTHING LLubiLd LIST ALL STATES AND COUNTIES FOR PROPERTIES OVERLAPPING STATE OR COUNTY BOUNDARIES STATE CODE COUNTY CODE STATE CODE COUNTY CODE 11 FORM PREPARED BY NAME/ TITLE Jody Turner, ORGANIZATION Massachusetts Historical Commission STREET & NUMBER 294 Washington Street CITY OR TOWN Boston Research Assistant and Brian Pfeiffer, Medford Historical Commission March 31, 1976 TELEPHONE 617-727-8470 STATE Massachusetts 02108 12 STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER CERTIFICATION THE EVALUATED SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS PROPERTY WITHIN THE STATE IS: NATIONAL - STATE - LOCAL2 X As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-665), 1 hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated according to the critena and retures ser forth ythe Natinl ar Brye.

STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER SIGNATURE TITLE Saluch Kud Umadon DATE Executive Director, Massachusetts Historical Commission 3/30/76 FOR NPS USE ONLY 1 HEREBY CERTIFY TH THIS PRORERIYISL OROED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER Boting ATTEST: OOGY AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION DArE 4/30/75 DATE y-3e?6 KEEPER OFTHE NATIONAL REGISTER GPO 892.453 Property Albree-Hall-Lawrence House Middlesex State Massachusetts Working Number 4.6.76.3013 TECHNICAL, Photos - Castinig incairect CONTROL Maps 1 cout. sheet 4.9.76 World have heer helpfud to see photo f rear poot. HISTORIAN 1930 additions but the integuity of the earliest portions Acçept rethain intact. Quite acceptable for local history E.Amith and architectire. 4-14-16 Zustifcstion for Exploratin/Sellements Millary ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIAN areas of sipnycane seem ambyuous iccept Caufluem areh.

fine - no prorem for weal nynifcana I agnee with Ed-tawle's conment 7/16/76 OK lebouch ARCHEOLOGIST OTHER HAER Inventory - Review REVIEW UNIT CHIEF Accepi Cole 4/20/16 BRANCH CHIEF KEEPER 4.30-26 APR 3019/6 INT:21 National Register Write-up Federal Register Entry 6-1-26 Send-back Re-submit Entered United States Department of the Interior National Park Service WASO No. 7 Albree-Hal1-Lawrence House Medford, MA Brian Pfeiffer, photographer 1976 Medford Historical Commission, City Hall, Medford, MA 02155 Looking northeast at facade and rear ell. Photograph #1 meddlesey counte APR 6 1976 PROPERTY OF THE NATIONAL REGISTER ACIDAM T PAUL GUZZI Socrobary of the Commonwealth 1 April 1976 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Ofice of the Secretary Massachusetts Historical Commission 291 Mashington Sree Boston, Massachuselts 02108 (617) 727-8470 Mr.

Charles Herrington Chief, Registration National Register Department of the Interior Washington, DC 20240 Dear Charles: Enclosed please find four nomination forms for the following properties: 1. Medford: George P. Fernald House 2. Medford: Albree-Hall-Lawrence House 3. Randolph: Jonathan Belcher House 4. Worcester: Timothy Paine House These properties have been voted eligible by the Massachusetts Historical Commission (State Review Board) and have been signed by the State Historic Preservation Officer, Elizabeth Reed Amadon. Sincerely yours, Nat Patricia I.

Weslowski Survey Director Massachusetts Historical Commission PLW/jaa enclosures RECEIVED APR 6 1976 NATIONAL REGISTER ST 8 (9 Regional Director, North Atlantic Region MO:2jb 5/4/76 PR ENTRIES IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER STATE MASSACIUSNITS Date Entered APR 30 1978 Name Peirce, Peter, Store Belcher, Jonathan, House Pernald, George P., louse Albree-Hal1-Lavrence, louse Seith Alumae Gynnasium Putnan, General Ierael, House Dillinghan House Wellealey Town Hall Location Middleborough Plymouth County Randoiph Norfolk Couaty Medford Middleser County Medford Middleser County Northampton Hampshire County Danvers Essex County Brewater vicinity Barastable Couty Wellesley Norfolk County Also Notified Hon. Edward M. Kennedy Hon. Edward W. Brooke Hon. Margaret M. Heckler lon. James A. Eurke Eon. Torbert Il. MacDonald Hon. Silvio O. Conte Hon. Michael J. Harrington Hon. Cerry B.

Studds State Eistoric Preservation Officer Mra. Elizabeth R. Amadon Executive Director, Massachusetts Historical Conmiesion 294 Haahington Street Boston, Massachusette 02103 INT: 2950-75 NATIONAL REGISTER DATA UNAME as it appears on federal lister: 2 OTHER NAMES: Albree-Hall-Lawrence House LOCATION street & number 353 Lawrenee Rd. OWNE -STAT EXISTING SURVE -MUNICIPAL JHAER ONHL Nty/ town Medford -COUNTY OMULTiPLE CFEDERAL(agency name) )FUNDED? OYES (11)CONGRESS.

DISTRICT vieinity of Istate MA 7 12)SOURCE Of NOMINATION coun Middlese 8ADMI LISTATE L RECISTER HISTOR ) CONDITION Dexcellent Xgood Dfair - deteriorated Oruins Dunexposed Ounexcavated ACCESS OYES-Restricted DYES -Unrestric AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE : CARCHEOLOGY- prehistoric-2 -COMMERCE-6 CARCHEOLOGY-historic-1 - COMMUNICATIONS -7 - AGRICULTURE -3 - CONSERVATION - 8 XARCHITECTUR - ECONOMICS-9 - ART-5 - EDUCATION-10 Xaltered Qunaltered nstructed ated XNo Acces: DENGINEERING-11 -ENTERTAINMENT-26 CEXPLORATION -12 -HEALTH-27 C INDUSTRY- 13 - INVENTION - 14 Moriginal site Omoved Ounknown 17)features: XSUBSTANTIALLY INTACT-1 *OSUBSTANTIA QONOT INTACT-O 9O NOT INTACT WXUNKNOWN- 20 NOT APPLICABLE -7 NOT APPLIO - Unknown - LANDSCAPE ARCH.- 15 - LAW - 16 - LITERATURE - 17 - MILITARY- 18 - MUSIC - 19 - PHILOSOPH - 20 19 ADAPTIVE USE OYES XINO SAVED?

OYES IS PROP -POLITICS/ GOVT.- 21 CRECREATION -28 CCL firs CRELIGION-22 - SETTLEMENT-29 - SCIENCE- 23 CURBAN PLANMING-31 - SOCIAL/HUMANITARIAN-24 'old - OTHER (SPECIFY) - SOCIAL / CULTURAL -30 'onl - TRANSPORTATION - 25 pre-c 3) functions dates of initial danstructign:1|785 WHEN HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT: private residence CURRENTLY: private residence major alterations: East end enlorqed: 1830's-40'3 historic events: architectural style(s): garchiteet: master builder: Federdl -landscape architeet / garden designer: ( interior decorator: artist: artisan: NAMES give role & date PERSONAL: 1720: John Albree settled sile. 1799: Sold to Nathaniel Hall 1850'%: ledsed as d pig farm.

EVENTS: INSTITUTIONAL: @NATIONAL REGISTER WRITE-UP Frame, dlapboarding ; 2%½ stories, irregueas shape interion and intrrin end chimnerts, I-story projecting front center entrance t2 hupped roof and sidelights fi Home of fohn Albréé, sotdrer E. contribu Revoliteman war W one of towr's best preserved 18% . bueding. ruginal ét 785 2-stry structure dà now reas ell; date-18th eo front sectiin epar expanded, e 1800, 1830 reviewers initialsManthadate"/10/18 M IF ADDITIONAL SPACE NEEDED, NUMBER & PUT ON REVERSE