Nomination for Flagg--Coburn House

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

NPS Form 10-900 (3-82) OMB No. 1024-0018 Expires 10-31-87 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form See instructions in How to Complete National Register Forms Type all entries-complete applicable sections 1. Name For NPS use only received APR 18 1986 date entered MAY 1 986 historic Flagg - Coburn House (preferred) and or common 2. Location Coburn House street & number 122 E. Merrimack Street N/A - not for publication city, town Lowel1 N/A vicinity of state Massachusetts 3.

Classification Category Ownership district - public X building(s) X private structure both site Public Acquisition object N/An process being considered code 025 county Middlesex code 017 Status X occupied unoccupied work in progress Accessible Xyes: restricted - yes: unrestricted no Present Use - agriculture _ commercial educational entertainment - government - industrial - military _ museum -park X private residence . religious _ scientific - transportation - other: 4. Owner of Property name street & number James R. Foley and Dorothy J. Foley 722 East Merrimack Street city, town Lowell N/A - vicinity of 5. Location of Legal Description state Massachusetts courthouse, registry of deeds, etc. Northern Middlesex County Registry of Deeds street & number Gorham Street city, town Lowell state 6.

Representation in Existing Surveys nventory title ,ot the Historic Assets_of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts jas this property been determined eligible? Massachusetts _ yes X no date 1978 Iny. # 700 federalXstate - county - - local depository for survey records Massachusetts Historical Commission, 80 Boylston Street Boston city, town state Massachusetts 7. Description Condition _ excellent .good fair deteriorated ruins unexposed Flagg - Coburn House, Lowell, Massachusetts Check one _X unaltered - altered Check one X original site moved date Describe the present and original (if known) physical appearance

Description of the property

The Flagg-Coburn House sits on a bluff above the Merrimack River in the eastern section of Lowell, an industrial city in northeastern Massachusetts. Built in 1926, it is a low stone-faced structure, reminiscent in style and forn of an Old World cottage. The building, sited on a granite ledge, is set back about 52 feet above the river's southern shore and 80 feet from East Merrimack Street. Its northern facade overlooks the river, while its southern facade is oriented toward the street. The building is flanked by low, dense evergreen bushes and rhododendrons, while the lot contains several evergreens and deciduous trees. The house is located in the midst of more recent construction, densely set: to the east and west, the 10,000-square-foot lot is abutted by mid 20th century houses, while to the north it adjoins the river.

There is one outbuilding on the property, a simple frame storage shed built within the Tast 25 years. The housewas designed by New York-born architect Ernest Flagg and built according to his principles for inexpensive house construction. Its plan was said to be based on clasically proportioned modules, with attention paid to symmetry and balance aswell as to construction costs and practicality of room arrangement. In appearance, the building is essentially a gable-roofed rectangular core with hip-roofed extensions, its roofline broken by projecting dormers, monitors, and fieldstone chinneys. A photoessay in the Boston Herald, published as the building was nearing completion in January 1926, depicted the most unusual features of Mr. Flagg's innovative system of small-house construction.

These included: the 15-inch-thick walls, only 1 1/2 feet in height, made of rubblestone around a poured concrete core; monitorlike tripartite ridgeline dormers, which could be kept open throughout the warmer months for ventilation; and the unusual plan, with service rooms, studio, bedrooms, and kitchen at the front of the house, andliving room and coveredstone patio with fireplace located at the rear of the house, overlooking the river. The building's 1ow stone walls and multiplaned,steep-pitched roofs made the use of tie beams unnecessary, while the cement slab construction diminished building costs and eliminated the cost of digging a basement. The house is 1 1/2 stories in height on its eastern side and only one story at its western end. Its steep roof, with deep overhanging eaves and exposed ratters, combines hip and cross gable forms.

The vast expanse of roof in proportion to wall gives the house the appearance of a thatched-roofed European country cottage. Pu neta ting the aoar at Trecilsr eeoos ar ta monitorlike dormers, Flagg's own invention. Dormers on the hipped roofs are oriented to the east, while those on the central gable roof face forward to north and south. Continued NPS Form 10-900-a (3-82) OMB No.

1024-0018 Expires 10-31-87 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service For NPS use National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form recaived date entered Continuation sheet Flagg - Coburn House, Lowell, Massachusetts Item number 7 Page The building's main entryway is located on its eastern side and, with its bracketed gable hood and heavy panelled door, is the only significant element on an otherwise unpretentious facade, containing as it does one plainly enframed pair of 1/1 windows on the ground floor and a ridgeline dormer and gable dormer above. The facade faces onto a driveway. On the street facade, the house displays two entries, both surmounted by gabled hoods, and four pairs of paired 1/1 sash, all set high under the eaves and flanked by decorative blinds.

The high, hipped-roof dormer at the building's eastern end contains one pair of 1/1 sash and displays applied half-timbering - Above, at the roof's highest point, a single monitor faces north. There are two north-facing monitors on the central gable, while four east-facing monitors on the flanking hipped roofs are also visible. The building's southern facade was designed to take full advantage of the river view. Fenestration on the ground floor is a trio of tall 2x3 windows. Slightly off center, Flagg included a shed-roof-covered patio, with fireplace, enclosed on three sides by the building's projecting planes. That patio has since been converted to additional indoor space, enclosed on its fourth side by modern sliding glass doors. The western facade includes two 1/1 windows flanking a central outer chimney. The interior retains its original plan and detailing.

Ground-floor rooms at the building's western portion and those in the upper story of the eastern portion have full-height ceilings open to the roof, with exposed beams. Flagg's interior was as carefully thought out as his exterior; lacking a basement, the house included storage through built-in units under the eaves and seryice areas--utility and boiler rooms--located at the structure's western end. Archaeology While no prehistoric sites have been recorded on the property, there is a potential for sianificant survivals. The marqins of the Merrimac River were intensively utilized by native people, and if the land surface has not been substantially altered, it is likely that sites are present.

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

Significance Flagg - Coburn House. Lowell, Massachusetts Period prehistoric 1400-1499 1500-1599 1600-1699 1700-1799 1800-1899 X 1900 Areas of SignificanceCheck and justify below --. archeology-prehistoric community planning - archeology-historic conservation agriculture economics Xarchitecture education -art engineering commerce exploration/settlement communications industry invention landscape architecture law literature military - music - philosophy politics/government Builder/Architect Ernest Flagg . religion science sculpture social/ humanitarian theater transportation other (specify) Specific dates 1926 Statement of Significance

Statement of significance

(in one paragraph) The Flagg-Coburn House retains integrity of location, design, materials, setting,feeling,workmanship, and association. Built in Lowell in 1926, the house was designed by prominent New York architect Ernest Flagg for Frederick W. Coburn, a member of a local industrial family. It is the earliest known New England example of Flagg's unique design for a smnall, inexpensive suburban bungalow. Representing the work of a master, the house therefore fulfils Criterion C. of the National Register of Historic Places on the local and state levels. Ernest Flagg (185/-1947), the house's designer/architect, was born in Brooklyn but educated abroad; in 1888, he graduated from the Ecole des Beaux-Arts ir Paris.

Flagg was well-schooled in the methods and principles of the Beaux Arts school, with its emphasis on a clear articulation of function and a logical balance between aesthetics and practicality. He returned to New York thoroughly versed as well in the richly detailed, classically inspired style favored by the school and its architects. He established an independent practice in New York City in 1891. In 1896, Flagg was commissioned to design the new campus for the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis. A year later, he designed a fine Beaux-Arts style building for the Singer Sewing Machine Company on New York City's lower Broadway.

Shortly thereafter, he designed the Bourne Building on the lot to the west of the Singer Company's building, which was subsequently enlarged In 1906-1908, the Singer Offic Building and the Bourne Building were remodeled and intergrated in the forty-one-story Singer Tower, at 612 feet then the tallest office building in the world. He also designed the office building for publisher Charles Scribner's Sons at 597 Fifth Avenue, which still serves the firm today. Flagg also designed many splendid townhouses; a number were located in New York City, including his own at 109 East 40th Street and the Oliver G. Jennings residence at 7 East 72nd Street, which was crowned by a convex mansard roof with copper crestings. His own country house, "Stone Court" at Dongan Hills on Staten Island, was a charming gambrel-roofed example of neo-Dutch Colonial architecture.

In addition to buildings on a grand scale, both residential and commercial, Flagg was also concerned with buildings for the lower and middle classes. attempted to reduce the cost of small suburban homes with his "Ernest Flagg Srok, Smali usesi Tnepe Lcomonte Besfan ane conscrueeion, puatrsned th 1922. Continued 9.

The rest of the file

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

Major Bibliographical References See Contination Sheet 10. Geographical Data Acreage of nominated property Less than one acre Quadrangle name - Lowell, Mass. - New Hampshire UT M References A19] L3/1,2/5,0,01 Zone Easting 417 2/3 8|20 Northing E G Quadrangle scale 1:25000 D LL F Easting Northing LLLLL LuLJ LLILL Verbal boundary description and justification See assessor' map List all states and counties for properties overlapping state or county boundaries state N/A code county code state code county code 11. Form Prepared By name/title Betsy Friedberg, Preservation Planner, Massachusetts Historical Commission, with James R. Foley organization Massachusetts Historical Commission date February 1986 street & number 80 Boylston Street telephone 617-727-8470 city or town Boston state Massachusetts 12.

State Historic Preservation Officer Certification The evaluated significance of this property within the state is: national _ state X local As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89 665), I hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated according to the criteria and procedures set forth by the National Park Service.

State Histortc Preservation Oflicer signature Vaecui A Talmage Executive Director title State Historic Preservation Officer date April 10,/986 For NPS use only I hereby certify that this property is included in the National Register NelaesByc Eateced ia thhe raopas al tha Maltonal rosaiei Natienal Regtster Attest: Chief of Registration GPO 911-399 date 5-15--86 date NPS Form 10-900-a (3-82) OMB No.1024-0018 Expires 10-31-87 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service For NºS National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form received date entered Flagg - Coburn House, Lowell, Massachusetts Continuation sheet Item number 8 1 Page The nominated property, built in 1926, was the first Ernest Flagg house in It was constructed for Frederick W.

Coburn, a Lowell-born historian and patron of the arts whose family had participated in the first years of Lowell's development as a planned industrial city. Coburn, his wife, and daughter had lived in Cambridge for many years, but chose to return to Lowell in the 1920s. Coburn's wife and daughter were artists, said to be interested in new and modern art forms. It is unknown how the family became familiar with Flagg's work, but perhaps it can be said that both the building's design, lit by ridgeline dormers, and its site--a then-isolated bluff overlooking the Merrimack River in the eastern section of Lowell--were appropriate to artistic endeavors. Lowel1 in the early 20th century was showing signs of decline after decades of prominence as a highly developed textile center. Population growth slowed, as did commercial and residential development.

Company-owned workers housing had been built near the mills through the Civil War, while residences for the middle and upper classes were spread over several hilly locations, particularly on the slopes above the Merrimack River, overlooking the city One of these neighborhoods, Belvidere, was located just south of the river; a large number of examples of high-style Victorian residences were constructed there during the late 19th century. The neighborhood social distinctions continued through the First World War. During the 1920s, production slowed and the city's economy generally declined. Residential construction, reflecting the declining economy, likewise diminished and consisted primarily of modest bungalows and two-family dwellings.

Thus the construction of the Flagg-Coburn House--an innovative building in a prominent location--on a bluff a short distance north of Belvidere, and unlike any other bungalows being built in the area, was somewhat anomalous, significant not as part of a general building trend, but as the product of an isolated decision by a family interested in the arts and the avant-garde. The Coburn site was an idyllic one for an innovative house constructed of rustic materials--rubblestone and rough timbers. It was located some 60 feet above the Merrimack River, and affordeda view of Hunts Falls and the tree-covered Christian Hill, the highest point in the city (now a residential subdivision), beyond. operated it until 1967. and The Five Cents Savings Bank. Mr. Runnels also served as the City of Lowell's superintendent of Water Department from 1936 to 1942.

He was known locally for the high auality of his workmanship. Continued NPSForm10-900-a (3-82) OMB NO. 1024-0018 Expires 10-31-87 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form Flagg - Coburn House, Lowell, Massachusetts Continuation sheet Item number ar NPS ueD anh received date antered 8 Page The Coburn family lived in the house until the late 1940s. Since that time, the building has had a succession of owners. In recent decades, the character of the once isolated neighborhood has changed, as a small residential neighborhood has evolved, a trend that continues into the present. The only najor alteration to the structure--the enclosure of a rear patio--was done by a later owner.

NPS Form 10-900-a (3-82) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form Flagg - Coburn House, Lowell, Massachusetts Continuation sheet Item number 9 OMB No.1024-0018 Expires 10-31-87 For NPS uee orl received date entered Page 1 9. Major Bibliographical References I) Works about Ernest Flagg 1. Burnham, Alan, "Forgotten Pioneering." Architectural Forum, April, 1957. Dictionary of Anerican Biography, "Ernest Flagg." New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1974. Flagg, Lucius C. S. and Norman G., Family Records of the Descendants of Gershom Flagg (1907). Haimnett, Ralph W., Architecture in the United States: A Survey of Architectural Styles Since 1776. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1976. 5. Handlin, David P., The American Home: Architecture and Society--1815-1915. Boston: Little, Brown, 1979.

Hitchcock, Henry-Russell et al., The Rise of an American Architecture. New York: Praeger, 1970. 7. Kidney, Walter C., The Architecture of Choice: Eclecticism in America 1880-1930. New York: George Braziller, 1974. 8. Nevins, Deborah, and Robert A. M. Stern, The Architect's Eye: An American Architectural Drawings from 1799-1978. New York: Pantheon, 1979. 9. "A New Type of City House." Architectural Record, Sept. 1908, on Flagg's own town house. 10. Platt, Frederick, America's Gilded Age: Its Architecture and Decoration. New York: AS Barnes, 1976. 11. Roth, Leland M., A Concise History of American Architecture. New York: Harper & Row, 1979. 12. Scully, Vincent, American Architecture and Urbanism. New York: Frederick Praeger, 1969. Semsch, Otto F., ed., A History of the Singer Building Construction (1908). 14. Whiffen, Marcus, and Frederick Koeper, American Architecture 1607-1976.

Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 1981. 15. Who Was Who in America, Vol. 2. (1943-1950). Chicago: Marauies Who's Who, T971. Continued OMB No. 1024-0018 Expires 10-31-87 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places -Nomination Form Inventory1agg - Coburn House, Lowe11, Massachusetts Continuation sheet Item number date antered Page 16. "The Works of Ernest Flagg." Architectural Record., April 1902. II) Works by Ernest Flagg 1. Flagg, Ernest, "Anerican Architecture as Opposed to Architecture in America. Architectural Record, October, 1900. "The Ecole des Beaux-Arts." Architectural Record, Jan.-Mar. through July-Sept. 1984. 1911. - "Fireproof Tenements and the Building Lay." N.Y. Architect, June "A Fish Store: An Au obiography: Sketch of the Education of an Architect'""Journal Anerican Institute of Architects, May 1945.

Genealogical Notes on the Founding of New England. Baltimore, MD: GeneaTogical Publications, 1973 (Reprint. 1922). "Influences of the French School on Architecture in the U.S." Architectural Record, October-December, 1984. Le Naos du Parthenon, 1928. "The Limitation of Height and Area of Building in N.Y." Anerican Architect and Building News, April 15, 1908. 1920. "The Module System in Architectural Design." Architecture, July. "New Buildings for the U. S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD." American Architect and Building News, July 1 and 8, 1908. , Smal1 Houses, their Economic Design and Construction, 1922. III) Works About the House Better Homes and Gardens. Remodeling Ideas, Fall 1983, pp. "Attic Conversions: A Teenager's Suite," Continued NPS Form 10-900-a (3-82) OMB No.

1024-0018 Expires 10-31-87 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service Por NPS Uas Orh National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form received date entered Flagg - Coburn House, Lowell, Massachusetts Continuation sheet Item number 9 Page 3 2. "Ralph Runnels Still an Engineer at 90." Lowel1 Sun, August 22, 1977, p.4. 3. "Rotogravure Section," Boston Herald. January 10, 1926. IV) Works by Frederick Coburn Coburn, Frederick W., Historicat Pubtishing Co., 1920. 3 vols. History of Lowell and Its People. New York: Lewis 0889 Flagg-Coburn House 722 E. Merrimack Street -owel1, MA owell Assessors Map Book 2550, Page 306 1"=50" RIVER + MERRIN 908 PAGE 45801 7940% E. MERRIMACK S1. 89244r 086+1 SL081 Attachment #2 Flagg-Coburn House 122 E.

Merrimack Street Lowe11, MA The land in said Lowell, with buildings thereon, situated on the Northerly side of East Merrimack Street, and thus bounded and described: Southerly: by said East Merrimack seventy-five and 22/100 (75.22) feet; Easterly: by Lot #9 on plan of land hereinafter mentioned; one hundred forty-seven (147) feet; Northerly: by Merrimack River, seventy-six (76) feet, more or less; and Westerly: by Lot #7 on said plan, one hundred forty-two (142) feet. Containing ten thousand eight hundred thirty-seven (10,837) square feet, more or less, and being Lot #8 on a plan of land entitled "Plan of Land in Lowell, Mass., belonging to the Estate of Charles I. Hood" surveyed May 1922 by Henry P. Brooks, Civil Engr., and recorded with Middlesex North District Registry of Deeds, Plan Book #42, Plan #22.

0 1703 122EAST MERRIMACK S1 Mootyogs RIVER Plam MERRIMACK T6': 018 1083155 142 13.1 1/000 4H6O 25° 16.5 1½ LENEL- FIELDSTONE FOUNOTA. Desmarais 13.1 147' EXCEPTION WOOO SHEO ENCROACHMENT - 15.22 ENST MEDDIMACK S FOR MORTGAGE PURPOSES ONLY DESMARAIS ASSOCIATES, INC. RAYMOND F. DESMARAIS Registered Land Surveyor DAVID 8. DESMARAIS 566 Rogers St., Lowell, MA 01852 459.9860 I hereby certify that the dwelling shown on this plan is not located within a flood hazard area as shown on Federal Emergency Manage- ment Agency/Federal Insurance Administration Maps. Community Number 2502010010A Identification Date. APRIL 161919 By saymsal-t Acsmarais Registered Land Surveyor Setbacks shown on this plan are for the determi- nation of zoning requirements only. Not for Boundary Deter- mination.

scale: ["-20 date:10-24.83 I certify to the Title Insuror and to the Bank that the building is located approximately as shown and conforms to the zoning laws dimensional requirements regarding sett land ot tines in ah reguitrenot DOE when constructed. 7 Lesmaraus REGISTERED LAND SURVEYOR MDOLEGEX County Deed Reference Book 2322 page 62 Plan Reference Book 42 Plan 22 #29996 EGISTEREO LAND SURVEYOR 8600/052 WASO Form - 177 ("R" June 1984) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES EVALUATION/RETURN SHEET Flagg-Coburn House Middlesex County MASSACHUSETTS resubmission nomination by person or local government owner objection appeal Substantive Review: Reviewer's comments: J sample Jrequest Satored Watione1 Jappeal Working No._ APR 1 8 1986 Fed. Reg. Date: 9 23/87 Date Due:.

5/15/ 16 6/2487 Action: _ACCEPT _5-13-- legd.stez RETURN _ REJECT- Federal Agency: -NR decision Recom./Criteria Reviewer Discipline Date see continuation sheet Nomination returned for: technical corrections cited below substantive reasons discussed below 1. Name 2. Location 3. Classification Category Ownership Public Acquisition 4. Owner of Property 5. Location of Legal Description 6. Representation in Existing Surveys Has this property been determined eligible? yes no 7. Description Condition excellent good fair deteriorated ruins unexposed Check one - unaltered altered Describe the present and original (if known) physical appearance summary paragraph completeness clarity alterations/integrity dates boundary selection Status Accessible Present Use Check one original site moved date 8.

Significance Period Areas of Significance-Check and justify below Specific dates Statement of Significance (in one paragraph) Builder/Architect - summary paragraph completeness g clarity applicable criteria justification of areas checked relating significance to the resource context relationship of integrity to significance justification of exception other 9. Major Bibliographical References 10. Geographical Data Acreage of nominated property Quadrangle name UTM References Verbal boundary description and justification 11. Form Prepared By 12. State Historic Preservation Officer Certification The evaluated significance of this property within the state is: _national state local State Historic Preservation Officer signature date title 13.

Other Maps Photographs Other Questions concerning this nomination may be directed to Signed - Date Phone: _ GPO 918-450 Comments for any item may be continued on an attached sheet Photo#1 of3 Flagg/Coburn House 722 E. Merrimack Street Lowe11, Mass. 01852 James R. Foley 3/18/84 722 E. Merrimack Street Lowel1, Mass. 01852 This is a view of the Northeast and side of the house showing the formal entrance to the house. Also showing, a gable and ridge vents. Photo # 2 0f3 Flagg/Coburn House 722 E. Merrimack Street Lowell, Mass. 01852 James E. Foley 3/18/84 722 E. Merrimack Street Lowell, Mass. 01852 This is a Northwest view of the front of the house Showing the entrance to front utility room (furthest) and the common entrance through the kitchen (nearest)- Flagg/Coburn House 722 E. Merrimack Street Lowell, Mass. 01852 Photo# 3013 James R. Foley 3/18/84 722 E. Merrimack Street Lowell, Mass.

01852 This is a view of the enclosed patio which originally was an open patio. This view over- looks the Merrimack River. This is the only addition to the house. CUSI HI CRNG The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Office of the Secretary of State Michael Joseph Connolly, Secretary P 254 850 498 Massachusetts Historical Commission Valerie A. Talmage Executive Director State Historic Preservation Officer April 9, 1986 Carol Shull National Register of Historic Places Department of Interior National Park Service P.O. Box 37127 Washington, DC 20013-7127 Dear Ms. Shull: Enclosed you will find the following nomination forms: Fairhaven, MILLICENT LIBRARY, 45 Center Street Lowell, FLAGG - COBURN HOUSE, 722 E. Merrimack Street All have been voted eligible by the State Review Board and have been signed by the State Historic Preservation Officer.

Owners were notified of pending State Reivew Board consideration 30-75 days before the meeting and were afforded the opportunity to comment. Conments re- ceived to date are attached to the nomination forms. Sincerely, Sarah Zimmerman Sarah Zimmerman Director, Preservation Planning Massachusetts Historical Cormission SZ/dr 80 Boylston Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02116 (617) 727-8470