HomeMy WebLinkAboutoutlook-drive_0075 FORM B -BUILDING
Assessor's number USGS Quad Area(s) Form Number
41/49A Boston N. Y 1108,1109
Town Lexington
*}` Place (neighborhood or village) Fair Oaks
f
Address 75 Outlook Drive
Historic Name George&Effie Briggs House
("Fair Oaks")
/ 1{ Uses: Present Residential
Original Residential
Date of Construction 1910
Source Lexington Valuation Lists
a
Style/Form Colonial Revival
Architect/Builder Willard Brown
Exterior Material:
Foundation rubble
Wall/Trim wood clapboard
ti 1 Roof asphalt shingle
Outbuildings/Secondary Structures
% garage(MHC #1109)
0"-
Major Alterations (with dates) date. garage moved and
r ,
turned,partial enclosure of sunporch
Condition good
Moved ® no ❑ yes Date
Acreage 93,451 SF
Recorded by Lisa Mausolf Setting mixed early 20th century residential
Organization Lexington Historical Commission
Date (month/year) July 2000
Follow Massachusetts Historical Commission Survey Manual instructions for completing this form.
BUILDING FORM(75 Outlook Drive)
ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION
Describe architectural features. Evaluate the characteristics of the building in terms of other buildings within the
community.
Constructed in 1910,the Briggs House(MHC#1108) is one of two noteworthy early houses constructed in the Fair Oaks
development(the other being 341 Marrett Road). It was designed by architect Willard Brown and is one of his substantial
Colonial Revival designs with a Craftsman style influence evident in the front pergola. The large2 1/2-story, gambrel-roofed
dwelling is sheathed in clapboards which are notable for their lack of comerboards; the ends of the wood siding meet at the
comers. The main house block measures 3 x 2 bays and is flanked on one side by a wing of similar height and two-bays
wide, set back slightly with a single-story open porch or piazza spanning the other end.
On the main house block only there are projecting front eaves which are decorated by short rafters. The center entrance
contains a six-panel door with the two upper panels filled with bullseye glass. The door is flanked by sidelights which are
two panes side. Sheltering the entrance is a partially enclosed pergola supported by fluted columns. Fenestration consists of
a mix of individual,paired and tripartite windows with a 6/1 or 8/1 configuration predominating. Pedimented dormers rise
from the front roof slope.
The flat-roofed piazza is supported by Roman Doric columns. Continuous 6/1 windows have been installed along the front
and rear elevations but the end has been left open. A Craftsman-style influence is evident in the gridded lattice panel between
the columns and in the beamed ceiling inside. A small recessed porch at the opposite rear corner of the house displays an
arched opening with a shingled corner post.
Adjacent to the house is a detached gambrel-roofed garage(MHC#1109)sheathed in clapboards. Historic photographs
indicate that the garage has been moved closer to the house and turned. It now rests on a concrete foundation. There is a
dou le-wide door opening on the gambrel front. Above the door in a quasi-Palladian type arrangement is an arched upper
opening with a small three-light elevated window on either side.
HISTORICAL NARRATIVE
Describe 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(81", 20 Wv✓aW Y' AA
This house was constructed in 1910 for George and Eff Briggs. Local assessors records indicate that in 1910 Briggs was
assessed for only the lot, by the following year a$18, 0 house had been constructed on the 87,690 square foot lot. The
house was designed by local architect Willard Brown and was one of the first houses constructed in the Fair Oaks
subdivision. Briggs was the president of Lexington Lumber. The Briggs family continued to own the house until the early
1940s. Robert and Eleanora Hallinan owned the property from 1953 to 1993 when it was sold to the present owners.
The Fair Oaks development was designed and managed by Arthur Horton, a landscape architect who worked for the
Metropolitan Park Commission in Boston for ten years. Much of his work designing boulevards, parks and reservations was
done under the direction of Charles Eliot(for more information see Area form Y, Fair Oaks).
BIBLIOGRAPHY and/or REFERENCES
Lexington Assessors Records.
Lexi" gton Directories, various dates.
Let\ gton Valuation Lists, various dates.
Recommended for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. If checked,you must attached a completed
National Register Criteria Statement form.
INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET Town Property Address
Lexington 75 Outlook Drive
Massachusetts Historical Commission Area(s) Form No.
Massachusetts Archives Building
220 Morrissey Boulevard 1108,1109
Boston, Massachusetts 02125
�I
i
RESIDENCE OF GEORGE E. BRIGGS, OUTLOOK DRIVE, "FAIR OAKS"
Massachusetts Historical Commission Community Property Address
220 Morrissey Boulevard
Boston, Massachusetts 02125 Lexington 75 Outlook Drive
Area(s) Form No.
Y 1108,1109
National Register of Historic Places Criteria Statement Form
Check all that apply:
❑x Individually eligible ❑ Eligible only in a historic district
❑ Contributing to a potential historic district ❑ Potential historic district
Criteria: ❑ A ❑ B ❑x C ❑ D
Criteria Considerations: ❑ A ❑ B ❑ C F-11) ❑ E ❑ F ❑ G
Statement of Significance by: Lisa Mausolf
Justify criteria that are checked in the above sections:
The George and Effie Briggs House at 75 Outlook Drive meets criterion C for individual listing on the National Register as
an excellent example of an early 20th century Colonial Revival residence which also shows the influence of the Craftsman
style. The house is also notable as the design of Willard Brown, a prominent Lexington architect. The house and associated
carriage house display a high level of integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association