HomeMy WebLinkAboutaudubon-road_0005 FORM B — BUILDING Assessor's Number USGS Quad Area(s) Form Number
50/39 Boston
MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION North
MASSACHUSETTS ARCHIVES BUILDING
220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02125 Town: Lexington
Place: (neighborhood or village)
Photograph
Address: 5 Audubon Road
Historic Name: French House
Uses: Present: residential
,y (', '• r} I :�' , Original: residential
j• Ff•. :_r
r Date of Construction: 1911
f Source: deeds
` Style/Form: Shingle Style
Architect/Builder: unknown (Wm. Roger Greeley?)
:lra i if
rF Exterior Material:
r, Foundation: concrete
Wall/Trim: wood shingle/wood
Topographic or Assessor's Map Roof: asphalt shingle
Outbuildings/Secondary Structures:
garage
Major Alterations(with dates):
T Vt
Condition: fair
Moved: no x yes Date
' x
Acreage: 0.16 acre
1
fio Setting: residential neighborhood
Recorded by: Lisa Mausolf
Organization: Lexington Historical Commission
Date(month/year): May 2008
Follow Massachusetts Historical Commission Survey Manual instructions for completing this form.
INVENTORY FORM B CONTINUATION SHEET LEXINGTON 5 AUDUBON ROAD
MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION Area(s) Form No.
220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD,BOSTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02125
Recommended for listing in the National Register of Historic Places.
If checked,you must attach a completed National Register Criteria Statement form.
ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION:
Describe architectural features. Evaluate the characteristics of this building in terms of other buildings within the community.
Eclectic in its inspiration,the early 20th century house at 5 Audubon Road is a wood-shingled 1 '/2-story structure with an
asymmetrical gablefront. At the lower edge of the gable,the main entrance is marked by a shallow, shed hood supported by two
simple trusses. It appears that this was originally an open,recessed porch but was later enclosed by continuous windows.
Adjacent to the entrance is a single bay of window openings. The original windows have been replaced by a set of three
casement units on both the first and second floors;the upper set is sheltered by a shed hood with a lunette fan in the attic. A long
shed dormer projects from the south slope of the house and is punctuated by an individual,pair and set of three casement
windows. A brick chimney rises off the ridge of the asphalt roof, the house is set on a concrete foundation.
A paved driveway extends to the south of the house terminating at a well-preserved, early 20t`century garage. The wood-
shingled structure is capped by a high hip roof which is sheathed in asphalt shingles. The double doors on the front have 4 x 2
glass panes over vertical panels.
HISTORICAL NARRATIVE
Discuss the history of the building. Explain its associations with local(or state)history. Include uses of the building, and the role(s) the
owners/occupants played within the community.
This property comprises the south part of lot 9 and the north part of lot 8 on the Augustus Scott parcel of land which was lotted
in 1903 (see 277 Waltham Street,MHC#461). Deed research indicates that the land on which the house stands was sold by
Katherine B. Stone,wife of Edward C.,to William Roger Greeley in 1911 (Book 3595,Page 303). The Stones lived at 9
Audubon Road. It seems likely that Greeley, an architect,designed and built the house although there is no evidence that he
ever lived here (he is listed as living on Somerset Road during this period).
By 1920 the property was being rented to three sisters,Mary, Grace and Harriet French. Two years later Greeley deeded the
property to Grace,Harriet and Helen French. Directories indicate that Grace worked as a teacher,Harriet was a stenographer,
and Helen was a professor at Wellesley College. Mary's employment is not listed. The property remained in the French family
until 1971 when it was sold by Helen French's estate to the present owners, Robert and Martha Martin.
BIBLIOGRAPHY and/or REFERENCES
Middlesex County Registry of Deeds, Cambridge,Mass.—Plan Book 158, Plan 10.
Town Directories
U.S. Census,various years.
Continuation sheet I