#SawyerFreeLibrary

A NEIGHBORHOOD WIPED OUT

Enduring Gloucester 5 Comments

In the year 2000 one particular block in the City of Gloucester, MA had not changed in 100 years with the exception of the Sawyer Free Library onto which had been built a new wing.

Holding down the corner of Middle Street and Dale Avenue stood the Saunders house, built in 1764, converted for library use in 1884 with additions in 1913 and 1976. 

Sawyer Free Library showing 1913 and 1976 additions to 1764 Saunders house.

Sawyer Free Library showing 1913 and 1976 additions to 1764 Saunders house.

In 1800 Capt. Beach owned the old Saunders house with a large piece of land. In 1801 John Mason bought land from Beach and built a house which he then sold to Joseph Henderson and Samuel Gale for $1600 in 1807. Henderson and Gale who were also house wrights next sold the lot with the house for $1215 to Nathaniel and Charles Babson in 1810.  Along with the house, there was also a shop.  It is not clear whether this was a separate structure or was included within the house.

This Federal period house with the gable end on School Street was next owned by John W. Haskell for many years.  The main part of the house that faced Middle Street had replaced 2 over 2 window sash, popular in the Victorian period.  The ell of the house still had small paned 6 over 6 window sash that would have been original to the house.  Although set way back on School Street the house faced Middle Street.  In front of the house is another house that can be seen in the photo.  It was most likely the back of the home of John J. Somes that was later replaced by the Lorraine Apartments built nearly thirty years after this picture was taken in 1882. 

Later in the 19th century, the Lane family lived there.  The house was deeded to Maria Lane, wife of Edwin Lane of the fire department.  At that time the fire station was on Dale Avenue on the site of the Central Grammar Apartments today.  It was just steps from Lane’s house to the station.

This is a Corliss and Ryan photo taken about 1882.  Courtesy of the Cape Ann Museum

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Eventually, another house was built next door at 7 School Street.  This house was occupied by J. Warren Haskell, probably the son of John W. Haskell.  It was larger than the charming but small Federal at 3-5 School Street.

Benjamin F. Somes, bank president, lived on the corner of School and Middle in a Federal period house with a nice fanlight over the door.  John J. Somes, long time city clerk, lived in a modest Victorian house that was next door to Benjamin’s house but newer and closer to Middle Street.   Photo courtesy of Cape Ann Museum.

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The two Somes lots on the corner of Middle Street and School Street became the lot on which the Lorraine Apartments replaced the Somes houses about 1910.  School Street was between the Benjamin Somes house and the Congregational Church.  The Somes houses may have been moved to new locations in the city.

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The block in 1851.  Saunders house was then Dr. Davidson’s

Next door on the right side of the Lorraine Apartments on Middle Street was the former First Parish Church, in recent years the Temple Ahavat Achim. Continuing up School Street it soon intersects with Mason Street.  Mason Street is a sharp right-hand turn facing Central Grammar and the passageway to Dale Avenue next to the Sawyer Free Library.

On this short leg of Mason Street at #3 was the pretty Italianate house that was quite new when Corliss and Ryan photographed it in 1882.  Right behind it is the back of the First Parish Church.  The small chimneys indicate stove heat.  Fireplaces were no longer needed for heat. Through the trees on the left side of the house is the gable end of the old house that originally stood on the corner of Dale Avenue and Warren Street facing City Hall.

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In 1867 this piece of land was sold for $950 with no house on it.  In 1883 it was sold by Horatio Andrews to Emma Perkins with a house for $5000.

This handsome house has pairs of brackets under the eaves, the hallmark of the Italianate period in architecture so popular in Gloucester.  Chances are that it was built in the 1870s.  This photo is courtesy of Cape Ann Museum.

As late as the year 2000 this neighborhood was still as described.  The Saunders house with its library additions was still next door to the old First Parish Church with the Lorraine Apartments on the corner of Middle and School streets.

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Library and First Parish Meeting House as they appeared in the late 19th century.

 

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The Lorraine Apartments built as a hospital circa 1910. Burned 2007.

On School Street, the first house, the old Haskell house, was still standing at 3-5 School Street with the other Haskell house still standing next door at 7 School Street.  Turning the corner onto Mason Street was the Italianate house of the later 19th century.  This completes this block as it was in the year 2000 just before this long-time stable and established block began to change. 

The first house to go was the former pretty Italianate at 3 Mason Street.  The Sawyer Free Library, in anticipation of expanding to meet modern library needs, purchased the house for $229,000 and demolished it.

The library next focused on the two School Street houses.  On June 4, 2003, the library acquired 3-5 School Street for $339,000.  Just about two weeks later 7 School Street was acquired by the library for $350,000.  Both houses were demolished clearing three house lots in preparation for a larger library with some parking.

That ended the planned demolition but unplanned demolition continued to wreak havoc on this city block.

In December of 2007, a devastating fire destroyed the Lorraine Apartments with a loss of one life.  As the apartment house collapsed in flames it took the former First Parish Church, then Temple Ahavat Achim, with it completing the destruction of this block.  Only the old Saunders house with its 1913 and 1976 additions remained.  Now Gloucester was presented with a unique opportunity to redevelop this block and begin renovations to the library.  There was plenty of room for the library to spread out.  Kirk Noyes, representing the Gloucester Development Team who owns Central Grammar organized a charrette hoping for inspiration for exciting redevelopment. 

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The new contemporary Temple Ahavat Achim

Sadly, this opportunity to do something really wonderful slipped away as a poor reproduction of the Lorraine Apartments quickly rose from the ashes and a controversial Temple replaced the old converted first Parish Church, its contemporary design thought to be out of place in a small historic district struggling to survive the loss, recover from this major upheaval, and keep its identity.

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The reproduced Lorraine Apartments.

The money hoped for though an override for the library failed to materialize and the 2007 plans for expansion of the library were shelved.

With a new round of library funding available in 2017, the library has again jumped on board.  Having discarded the 2007 plans the building committee began anew and presented the city with a disappointing set of plans.  Although the interior would provide the much-desired features it was recommended that the 1976 library building be demolished and replaced with a very contemporary and controversial building designed by architects who apparently didn’t look at the surrounding area, consider the Gloucester Historic District or the 250-year-old Saunders house.  The city was shocked! The important Saunders house didn’t work for these architects so that would be put out to pasture unless someone could come up with a sensible idea for an architecturally important but 250-year-old detached piece of the library.  The new plan has yet to be approved and the land on School Street and Mason Street remains vacant but providing some parking for the library.  The newest plan does not call for expanding in the rear of the library where the old houses once stood.

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Nearly $1,000,000 in historic Gloucester houses was lost, a number of affordable rental units lost, nearly $1,000,000 in grounds work, a beautiful amphitheater and landscaping doomed if the plan goes through.  Now there are two sets of architectural drawings costing several hundred thousand dollars wasted if the plan isn’t approved or used.

Why wasn’t the Gloucester Historic District Commission or the Gloucester Historical Commission included in the planning?  There are a lot of unanswered questions.  For the time being, we are left with a decimated neighborhood and an application pending for funding for a new library that will make many people very unhappy if it ever gets approved.

Although it didn’t all come out of one pocket the expenses incurred and the loss of antique houses and rental units in an attempt to renew the library are huge.  I feel sorry those who have contributed so much such as the amphitheater named for the Randos and the new beautiful landscaping by Hillarie Holdsworth that would be destroyed.  I feel sorry for the Monells knowing that the beautiful and appropriate building their father designed would callously be bulldozed.

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The new amphitheater for the library. Dedicated to the parents of John Rando.

When and if a new library gets built, whatever the design, it will represent a very costly trial and error attempt. There has been insufficient regard for the old Saunders house, the Gloucester Historic District, the National Register designation, or the civic-minded individuals who contributed time and money so generously in support of their library to make it better. 

 

Prudence FishPrudence Fish, of Lanesville, is a published author and expert on antique New England houses. Read Prudence Fish’s blog, Antique Houses of Gloucester and Beyond.

THE SAUNDERS HOUSE 1764

Enduring Gloucester Leave a comment
The Saunders house in October of 1958 before the addition of the Monell building. Harold Dexter photo, courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM

The Saunders house in October of 1958 before the addition of the Monell building. Harold Dexter photo, courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM

Perhaps no other house in the City of Gloucester has gone through as dramatic a metamorphosis as the mansion built by Thomas Sanders, Jr. in the pre-revolutionary days of 1764.  It was located on a prominent piece of land next door to the First Parish meeting house on Middle Street consisting of 3.5 acres.  The seller was William Ellery, Jr.  The date was May 5, 1764.

In this deed Thomas spelled his name without a “u”; Sanders.  When the Gloucester Preservation Committee provided a historic plaque for the house in the 1980s it was called the Thomas Sanders house.  The Registry of Deeds in Salem refers to Sanders when you look for Saunders.  However, when the house was sold to Capt. Beach in 1784 the name on the deed was Saunders.

Middle Street was laid out in the 1730s.  It was originally called Cornhill Street but by the time Thomas Saunders built his house it was called MiddleStreet.  Middle Street was midway between Fore Street now called Main Street and Back Street or High Streets, the old names for Prospect Street.

Here are more of the Georgians with gambrel roofs like the Saunders house lining Middle Street. Harold Dexter photo, 1958, Courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM

Here are more of the Georgians with gambrel roofs like the Saunders house lining Middle Street. Harold Dexter photo, 1958, Courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM

Most of the houses on Middle Street were built in the Georgian period, 1730-1790 approximately.  In the Harbor Village, especially on Middle Street, Georgian houses were built with gambrel roofs.  This was not necessarily true elsewhere but on Middle Street gambrel roofs prevailed.  True to form, Thomas Sanders’ house had a gambrel roof looking much like the neighboring houses including the William Dolliver house next door at 90 Middle Street.

This is the William Dolliver house next door to the Saunders house of similar size with a similar gambrel roof. The church is the Baptist Church taken down years ago, Photo by Harold Dexter, Oct. 1958 Courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM

This is the William Dolliver house next door to the Saunders house of similar size with a similar gambrel roof. The church is the Baptist Church that was taken down years ago, Photo by Harold Dexter, Oct. 1958 Courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM

The interior of the Sanders house was as good as they come. It had a pair of twin chimney which meant that inside the front door was a commodious, front to back center hall not possible in a house with a central chimney. The staircase was a great staircase with three balusters to a stair.  It had a very gradual ascent with wide treads and low risers.  The undercut spiral newel post was very beautiful and of the type only found in the best houses.

The design for the house probably came from an English pattern book.  There were no American pattern books; they would come later.  The colonists still looked to London for style and American housewrights were still using English pattern books when building the finest houses in America.

On the southeast corner opening right off the hall was a formal parlor.  This room was superb.  There had paneling on all four walls with bolection moldings.  It had window seats. The interior chimney was flanked by alcoves.  The paneling in these alcoves has the ability to be opened so that when entertaining these two rooms can be joined and communicate with each other, allowing a free flow between the two rooms.  The room in the rear may have a hidden fireplace but it is covered, most likely allowing the boiler in the cellar to be vented through that flue.

The other side of the house once had a matching chimney but alterations have obliterated most of the features on that side of the house and the chimney has been removed.  There is no sign of the original kitchen or cooking fireplace that was probably part of the missing chimney or perhaps in a kitchen ell off the back of the house.

Thomas died and his administrator sold the house to Capt. John Beach in November of 1784.  John Beach was a very flamboyant individual and under his ownership, the stately Georgian house began to change drastically.

In 1802 Capt. Beach hired Gloucester’s best builder, Jacob Smith, who would soon be building the Universalist Church, to build a major addition to the top of Beach’s house. This addition was like none that we have ever seen on a house, in Gloucester or anywhere in New England or beyond.

Off went the gambrel roof.  A third story was added to the house that had a footprint that was slightly smaller than the footprint of the original house so that the house was now tiered, with more tiers to come.  The house probably acquired a balustrade around the roof at the top of the second floor.

Most dramatic is what Beach did next.  He built an observatory at the fourth-floor level that reached a height of five stories and more.  What follows almost defies credibility.  One story of an unknown source claims that Beach made these changes because of being perturbed that the newer three-story house across the street, built by John Stevens Ellery, circa 1790, was blocking Beach’s view of the harbor.  He overcame that problem in a big way.

This observatory was an octagon 22.5 feet in diameter.  It filled the space between the two twin chimneys.  In the attic, the footings for the observatory can still be seen.  One side still has a threshold indicating that someone in the observatory could go outside onto the roof and probably walk around the observatory protected from falling by a balustrade.

A newspaper clipping from Friday, May 31, 1878, provides a description of this incredible observatory.

“It was an octagon two stories high having five large elliptical windows in the lower story. The second story was circular and had five circular topped windows.  The whole thing was “surmounted by a dome, like the State House in Boston.”  It must have resembled a tiered wedding cake or maybe it resembled a church steeple with a dome instead of a spire.

These new levels added to the house was reached by a beautiful staircase that was the epitome of the new Federal style with slender square balusters and a rather dainty handrail, a big departure from the heaviness of the Georgian period and its grand staircase below.  The lovely staircase is there but now terminates in a windowless attic.  Perhaps Beach was inspired by Jefferson’s Monticello or the more modest but spectacular belvedere atop Lord Timothy Dexter’s house in Newburyport.

The flat roof surrounding the observatory is still covered with roofing material but it wasn’t enough to keep the flat roof from leaking to the extent that in November of 1827 it necessitated removal of this incredible addition.  The description of this addition has survived but there was no photography at that time and no paintings or drawings have yet been found to show what this really looked like.  If not for the octagon footings still present in the attic as evidence of what had been there, the extent of this addition might have been lost for all time.

Capt. Beach left Gloucester for Chillicothe, Ohio.  The estate was sold at auction by Thomas Penhallow of Portsmouth, NH on October 23, 1828, just after the removal of the observatory.  Penhallow was the son in law of John Beach. The new owner was Dr. William Ferson who paid $1,320 for the property.

Now this great house continues on its journey as this story gets stranger!

After the sale to Dr. Ferson, in the summer of 1828, someone placed a document in the top of one of the gate posts revealing the history of the house.  This document was found by Dr. Davidson on June 15, 1850. Dr. Davidson’s mother, Phoebe Davidson, had purchased the house in 1849 for $6,500.

It next became the property of William Pew in 1878.  According to the newspaper, “Pew is making marked improvements on the Davidson property.  The garden spot will be made very attractive, and when the building is moved 13 feet to the westward, it will make one of the most desirable residences in this city.  In order to make this improvement a complete one, it will be necessary to cut down the rise on Dale Avenue, some 18 inches and there will probably be a petition presented to the City Government to make this change of grade.” The newspaper goes on to say that the property is in good condition and will not need many renovations on the interior.

Apparently, its new owner thought that it needed renovation on the outside, if not the inside!  It was William Pew who Victorianized the house, once again taking it to new heights so that even Capt. Beach would not have recognized his former home that he, himself, had transformed into a one-of-a-kind property back in 1802.  Under Pew’s ownership, it became the ultimate Victorian showplace.

Here is the old Georgian house already 100 year old transformed into a high styled Victorian house.

Here is the old Georgian house already 100 years old transformed into a high-styled Victorian house.

As if this house hadn’t gone through enough already in its first one hundred years, now it was going to be picked up and moved thirteen feet and required regarding Dale Avenue!  Will this metamorphosis ever stop?  Now, a tower was added to the front almost reaching the height of the long gone observatory of Capt. Beach.

In 1884 William Pew sold the property to Samuel Sawyer who purchased it for future library use.  The cost was $20,000.

At an unknown date the tower, piazzas, and fancy portico added by Pew were removed and a much more restrained house, the one we are used to seeing, emerged.

This photo shows how close the Saunders house was to the church. The Saunders house itself had a close call when that building, then Temple Ahavat Achim, burned. This is another Harold Dexter photo. Courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM.

This photo shows how close the Saunders house was to the church. The Saunders house itself had a close call when that building, then Temple Ahavat Achim, burned. This is another Harold Dexter photo. Courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM.

A duplex antique house, which stood across the street from the Saunders house on the corner of Dale Ave and Warren Street, was removed.  Here is a rare photo of that house taken by Harold Dexter in 1958. Several other buildings in the neighborhood have disappeared over the years.

This small but antique duplex house stood on the corner of Dale Avenue and Warren Street facing City Hall. It was removed at an unknown date but was still there in 1958 when Harold Dexter photographed it. Photo courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM.

This small but antique duplex house stood on the corner of Dale Avenue and Warren Street facing City Hall. It was removed at an unknown date but was still there in 1958 when Harold Dexter photographed it. Photo courtesy of Dawn Dexter and CAM.

By the beginning of the 21st century, it was obvious that work needed to be done on the Saunders house.  The old panes of glass were falling out of the window sash of the third floor, and wood used to cover the holes.  The outside was badly in need of paint.

In the early days of the 21 century the Saunders house was looking very shabby and in dire need of help. Much work was done at this time and the interior and exterior stabilized. P. Fish Photo

In the early days of the 21 century, the Saunders house was looking very shabby and in dire need of help. Much work was done at this time and the interior and exterior stabilized.   P. Fish Photo

Now the house built by Thomas Sanders/Saunders is again at a crossroad.  What will happen next?  The library, in its enthusiasm to expand with a completely new facility, finds that the money for which they are seeking comes with strings attached.  The poor old Sanders house that has gone through so much and survived so long, is not handicapped accessible and so cannot be used for library purposes if they are to get the funding needed to carry out their plan.  Therefore, the latest iteration of a plan for expansion completely cuts off the umbilical cord to the house, leaving it an orphan, standing by itself, detached from the library with no purpose on the horizon.

Sawyer endowed the library with $20,000 in addition to previous gifts amounting to more than $15,000.  Sam Sawyer, in giving the property for a library stated the following. “No part of the estate shall be alienated, but they shall be held sacredly in trust and in perpetuity”….”which shall be devoted to the use of the citizens especially, and to strangers so far as may be considered advisable by a majority of the Board of Directors, who shall have power to make by-laws and Rules for the government of the corporation”.

In 1913 the Sawyer Free Library was expanded with a new stacks addition added to the rear of the library.

In 1976 a large up-to-date addition was designed by local architect, Don Monell.  This addition has been the heart and soul of the library for the last forty years.   It is a low-key design, contemporary but reflecting the hipped roof of the Saunders house and with windows that visually link it to City Hall.  A recent improvement has been walkways and gardens designed by Hilarie Holdsworth complimenting the new amphitheater.

This is the most recent addition; an amphitheater dedicated to the parents of John Rando and due to his generosity. P. Fish photo

This is the most recent addition; an amphitheater dedicated to the parents of John Rando and due to his generosity.   P. Fish photo

Don Monell also designed the new Cape Ann Museum building (also attached to an old house) with an eye for having it work well with the library addition and City Hall, the centerpiece between the two newer buildings.  It was a good plan providing our city with a group of attractive buildings forming a Civic Center for Gloucester.

Here is The Saunders house as it stands today with the 1913 stack section bridging the gap between the old Saunders house and the 1976 contemporary wing designed by Don Monell. The roofline of the newest part reflects the hipped roof of the Saunders house. Each section is proportioned not to compete with the Saunders house and not to look like “the tail wagging the dog”. The position of the Saunders house is respected by the Monell building P. Fish photo

Here is The Saunders house as it stands today with the 1913 stack section bridging the gap between the old Saunders house and the 1976 contemporary wing designed by Don Monell. The roofline of the newest part reflects the hipped roof of the Saunders house. Each section is proportioned not to compete with the Saunders house and not to look like “the tail wagging the dog”. The position of the Saunders house is respected by the Monell building P. Fish photo

So where do we go from here?  The next chapter has yet to be written.  It is fervently hoped that this more than 250-year-old house is treated gently and with the respect it has earned as it enters a new and uncertain chapter.

 

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***On Wednesday, January 11 at 6:30 p.m., there will be a public meeting on the main floor of the Sawyer Library to get public input on the library’s proposal to build a new facility.  Those who attend will be able to view the proposed plan, which includes demolishing the current main structure designed by noted architect Don Monnell and eliminating the new garden, as well as isolating the historic Saunders house to a fate unknown.  The library wants those who attend to “ask questions and give their opinions.”  This will be an important meeting and we urge all who have questions and concerns about a project that is destined change the face of Gloucester’s civic center to attend and speak out.***

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Prudence FishPrudence Fish, of Lanesville, is a published author and expert on antique New England houses. Read Prudence Fish’s blog, Antique Houses of Gloucester and Beyond.