|
INVENTORY FORM B CONTINUATION SHEET LEXINGTON 424 MARRETT ROAD
<br /> MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION Area(s) Form No.
<br /> 220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD,BOSTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02125
<br /> 2248
<br /> by 1906), replaced by bus lines in 1924. Two state roadways were designated in the town, including Marrett and Middle streets
<br /> as the Route 2A bypass in the 1920s, and parts of Mass. Ave., Woburn Street, and Waltham Street as components of an early
<br /> Route 128 in the 1920s and 30s. By 1921, 35 new residential subdivisions were being developed in Lexington. Small
<br /> commercial centers were established to service the expanding population at various cross roads, including the intersection of
<br /> Spring Street and Marrett Road. Many of these crossroads included grocery stores and gas stations. Unfortunately, only one of
<br /> these new nodes—at Marrett Road and Waltham Street—merited documentation on the early 201h century Sanborn maps, most
<br /> likely because of the large area of associated housing development that was adjacent to it.
<br /> In the mid 19th century, 80 acres of farmland at the intersection of Marrett Road and Spring Street comprised the farm of Walter
<br /> Wellington, a prominent dairy producer who also served as a town selectman and, for more than a quarter-century, as an
<br /> assessor. Edward F. Porter acquired the farm in 1870 and sold it to James O'Brien in 1878. In 1890, the property was
<br /> purchased by Edward L. Payson, president of the Emerson Piano Company in Boston, who operated it as the Grassland Stock
<br /> Farm until 1917. Thoroughbred horses were raised here, and Payson built a large horse barn on the site of what is now 424
<br /> Marrett Road. In 1922, the farm was acquired by the prolific local developer Neil McIntosh, who platted the land for residential
<br /> subdivisions.
<br /> Granfield's Cafe and Market, which also contained a filling station, appeared on the site by 1926. An advertisement in the
<br /> Lexington directory in that year announces: "Market and Lunch / Everything Fresh –All the Time/Also Real Estate and
<br /> Insurance/Granfield's Corner, Middle and Spring Sts." Signs on the property in a 1930s photograph also advertise room
<br /> rentals for$1. (See attached photo.) William A. Granfield was proprietor of the cafe from at least 1926 through 1936; he
<br /> appears to have lived on site with his wife Lilla L. Granfield. In the 1930 census, their occupations were identified as merchant
<br /> at a "road stand" and school teacher, respectively. By 1945, the building was occupied by George F. Taylor, a grocer, and his
<br /> wife Elizabeth. From 1951 to 1974, the property was home to the Woodhaven Country Store. Richard M. Stone, employed as a
<br /> "tester", and his wife Doris, a secretary are identified as living here in 1955. By 1965, storekeepers were again living on site, in
<br /> the form of Robert L. and Lucille N. Bartholomew. In 1971, Woodhaven Wallpaper and Paint Co. opened in the building and
<br /> continues to operate here today.
<br /> BIBLIOGRAPHY and/or REFERENCES
<br /> Historic maps and atlases: Walling 1853; Beers 1875; Walker 1889; Stadly 1898; Walker 1906; Sanborn 1908, 1918, 1927,
<br /> 1935, 1935/1950.
<br /> Hudson, Charles. History of the Town of Lexington. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1913.
<br /> Kelley, Beverly Allison. Lexington;A Century of Photographs. Boston, Mass.: Lexington Historical Society, 1980.
<br /> Lexington Comprehensive Cultural Resources Survey, Period and Area Summaries.
<br /> http://historicsurvey.lexingtonma.gov/index.htm Accessed May 6, 2015.
<br /> Lexington Directories: 1922, 1924, 1934, 1936.
<br /> Lexington List of Persons: 1935, 1945, 1955, 1965.
<br /> Massachusetts Historical Commission. "MHC Reconnaissance Survey Town Report; Lexington." 1980.
<br /> . Form B, LEX.642, for 410 Marrett Road. (Prepared by Nancy Seasholes, 1998.)
<br /> U.S. Census: 1930.
<br /> Worthen, Edwin B. Tracing the Past in Lexington, Massachusetts. New York: Vantage Press, 1998.
<br /> Continuation sheet 2
<br />
|