marrett-road_0271 Enhanced Building Form

Browse Search

INVENTORY FORM B CONTINUATION SHEET LEXINGTON 271 MARRETT ROAD MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION Area(s) Form No. 220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02125 Continuation sheet 2 LEX.586 The plan of the main block of the house consists of a central passage flanked by rooms with rear-wall chimneys. There are accounts of experts from the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities (SPNEA), now known as Historic New England, inspecting the house and finding evidence of the existence of a center chimney having been at the core of the house, but that evidence could not be verified in current fieldwork. The history of the numerous additions to the north side of the house is difficult to determine, given the extensive alterations that occurred in the 20th century. There is documentation of a kitchen fireplace with attached bake oven, located in the portion of the north wing adjacent to the main block of the house, however, and so there may have been a lean-to constructed contemporaneously with the hall and parlor section, as there is no identifiable location for an early kitchen in that part of the dwelling.2 Yet, if the old wing was extant, it likely would have served kitchen functions. The principal stair in the main block of the house has rectangular balusters, a feature that is commonly found in Lexington houses (and elsewhere) that were constructed or modified in the ca. 1790-1820 period. Among these are 5 Harrington Street, 70 East Street, and 1377 and 1445 Massachusetts Avenue. 19th century alterations A two-story frame addition with its own exterior entrance was attached to the rear wing of the house in ca. 1820 or later. It has a small fireplace in both its first and second floor levels, and there is some suggestion of the location of a stair connecting the two floors, in the east wall. The shallow gable roof—necessitating covering either with tin or asphalt roll roofing—suggests a mid-19th century construction date. However, the design of the fireboxes, which are of the Rumford type, points to an earlier date of construction and the roof may have replaced an earlier one of steeper form. This structure was attached to the east face of the north wing, which may have served as a kitchen (the use history of the now-destroyed original plan of the north wing is presently unknown); if so, it may have served as a dormitory for hired hands. The first floor of this part of the house served as a guest bedroom in the early 20th century. The room had already acquired a closet with glazed door and the small fireplace in its east end wall had (by 1929) been closed up.3 The second floor retains two closet doors of Italianate design flanking the fireplace. The first generation of indoor plumbing, including at least two bathrooms (one at the north end of the second-floor hall and a second at the south end of the hall, over the entrance) was installed at about the same time, based upon descriptions of it published in 1929.4 The west wing retains a 19th century cast iron range, manufactured by John G. Copp, of Boston. It incorporates C. Carpenter’s hot air range No. 3 and bears an embossed “patent applied for” date of 1855. A similar example is located in 50 Kendall Street, formerly located at 29 Allen Street and moved in 1988. The example in that house has embossed patent dates of 1858 and 4 January 1859 on its components and was manufactured by Chilson of Boston. In 1928 the first floor of the wing was described as a “summer kitchen” and the 1855 range was referenced. The room to the west was at that time partitioned off and described as a “beautiful square room entirely ceiled with narrow matched oak”, and with a “tool house” beyond.5 This finish probably represented later-19th century work (ca. 1885) which is further documented in other parts of the house by doors of Italianate design, including the entrance door to the wing. The carriage barn attached to the house can be seen to have been modified from its form as depicted in the earlier extant photograph; by that date one of its bays had been fronted with a latticed treatment. This finish was set under an extension of the eave of the east half of the carriage barn. A pergola extended across much of the front elevation, returning along the west face of the main block of the house to engage with the south wall of the wing. Early 20th century A photograph from 1923 depicts the house with a large covered porch extending across its central three bays. A low balustraded wall had been constructed to the south and east of the house, enclosing a terrace. Window sash had been replaced with three-over-three double-hung sash having vertically-oriented lights. The west end of the carriage barn had been converted for vehicular use and its doors disguised with lattice work. A photograph published in The Modern Priscilla in April 1928 shows the house without any changes from its 1923 appearance.6 2 Della T. Lutes,” The Old, Old Kitchen in a Brand-New Dress,” The Modern Priscilla, February 1928. 3 Della T. Lutes, “The Little Step Down Room,” The Modern Priscilla, March 1929. 4 Della Thompson Lutes, “An Old Bathroom Made New,” The Modern Priscilla, January 1929. 5 Della T. Lutes, “The Old House and its Old, Old Elms,” The Modern Priscilla, April 1928. 6 Della T. Lutes, “The Old House and its Old, Old Elms,” The Modern Priscilla, April 1928.