Greek Revival House

Lane-Smith-Bailey House // 1848

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The most colorful house in Rockland, Massachusetts can be found on Union Street, the town’s busiest corridor, lined with houses and buildings of all ages and styles. The Lane-Bailey House was built in 1848 for Marshall Lane, a shoe manufacturer in town. The Greek Revival style residence features a gable roof oriented towards the street, which reads as a pediment and a full-length columned porch that wraps around the side of the home. The property was purchased in the early 20th century by William Andrew Grant Smith (1863-1908), a wealthy jeweler, who apparently added a second floor to the house, up from a 1-1/2 story cottage, and likely added the wrap-around porch at this time. Jumping ahead to the turn of the 21st century, the prominent house was owned by Brad and Sam Bailey, who painted the residence bold colors, added a wishing well and birdhouses to the front yard, and replaced the traditional grass lawn with crushed seashells. In an article talking about the house, Brad Bailey stated, “We do it because lots of things in life [that] are dull. Our house shouldn’t have to be.” Despite the polarizing thoughts and opinions from those who walk or drive by, the house is loved and certainly causes people to stop and smile!

Payson-Fettyplace House // 1845

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Behold, one of the finest, and well-preserved Greek Revival style homes in Salem. This is the Payson-Fettyplace House on Winter Street, built in 1845 with its gable facing the street to create a pediment, a wide entablature and cornice, and pilasters on the flushboard façade, which together make the building read more like a Greek temple than a residential home. The residence was built for Edward H. Payson, a bank officer, and his wife, Amelia, who lived in the home for only two years before moving into a larger residence across the street just two years after this house was completed. The property was sold to a Carleton Dole of Maine and again sold in 1850 to Thomas J. Fettyplace. The Fettyplace family were based out of Marblehead and many of them relocated to Mobile, Alabama, to make money in the cotton and shipping industry in the South. Thomas purchased this home in Salem for his mother who spent her final years here until 1861. After the Civil War, the Fettyplace brothers would move back north and this home remained in the family until 1912. The house is now a bed & breakfast known as the Amelia Payson House, named after the original owner.

Conway-Trumbull House // 1848

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Built in 1848 for Rev. James Conway of Salem, this stunning Greek Revival home on Winter Street blends architectural integrity with a bold pop of color! James Conway was born in Ballinamore, Ireland and moved to the United States and was ordained as a Catholic priest. He was a missionary with the Penobscot Tribe in Maine, before preaching in Lowell and later in Salem, Massachusetts. When he moved to Salem, he had this house on Winter Street built with flush board siding, paneled side-hall entry, and moulded window surrounds with corner blocks. Conway would later sell the property to Edward Trumbull, a Salem merchant and later to Ebenezer Putnam. It was likely Putnam who added the oversized second-story bay window on the facade of the house.

Bertram-Jewett-Hale House // 1842

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This lovely brick house on Winter Street in Salem was constructed for Capt. John Bertram in 1842-3. John Bertram (1795-1882) as a boy had his first job as a cabin boy and would work his way up to become a commander, ship owner and investor. He was extensively involved in shipping around the world including to Zanzibar, South America, and California and later he invested in railroads and real estate. He retired from actively commanding boats at age thirty-six with a vast fortune which he would become a philanthropist, giving much of it to charitable causes and his home city of Salem. Captain Bertram continued to own this property until 1855, when he moved to his new house on Essex Street, which he later gifted to the City of Salem as its public library. By the time of his death in 1882, he donated funds to the Salem Hospital, Old Men’s Home, Home for Aged Women, and various colleges and scholarships. Bertram sold this Winter Street house to John Jewett in 1855 for $10,000. Jewett began his career as a cabinet maker in Beverly in 1817 and subsequently became a dealer in mahogany, fancy woods, furniture and grain. Jewett died in 1874 and the property was sold by his heirs to Henry Appleton Hale in 1890. Engaged in the hardware business, Hale also served as president of the Salem Gas Light Company and as a vice president of the Salem Five Cents Savings Bank. Mr. Hale also served the country during the Civil War, and was shot in the face at Antietam on September 17, 1862. The bullet knocked out his front teeth and sliced off a piece of his tongue. Despite the severity of his wound, he recovered and returned to the regiment months later, and mustered out in 1865 following another injury. Henry A. Hale died in 1927. The property is significant not only for its owners, but also for its architectural quality and integrity. The transitional Federal-Greek Revival house features a recessed entry with original leaded sidelight and transom windows, brownstone trimmings, and alterations (likely by Hale) from the second half of the 19th century, including the projecting bay and arched window in the gable.

Nathaniel B. Perkins House // c.1836

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Nathaniel B. Perkins (1813-1885) was born in Salem the son of Captain Joseph Perkins (born 1785) and Elizabeth Hunt. Perkins was a wealthy ship owner in Salem and served on the Salem School Committee and was Treasurer of the Essex Marine Railway. He married Susan Breed in 1836 and built this house on Oliver Street in Salem soon-after. The high-style Greek Revival house is notable for its prominent recessed center entry with engaged, fluted Ionic columns and a modillioned entablature. Perkins likely had one of his ship carpenters work on the carvings as they are so unique.

Skinner-Boardman Mansion // 1832

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One of the finest houses in New Haven is this stately residence, the Aaron Skinner Mansion on Hillhouse Avenue. The mansion was built in 1832 for Aaron Nichols Skinner (1800-1858) from plans by architect Alexander Jackson Davis. Skinner was a Mayor of New Haven (1850-1854), and for a short time, ran a boy’s boarding school out of this house. Skinner was also a CT State Representative, serving two terms. The house was originally built as a three-bay, two-story house with one-story side wings and a rear ell. After his death, the house was purchased by Judge William W. Boardman, who in 1859, modernized the property hiring architect, Henry Austin, who filled in the side wings and added Italianate window mouldings. The monumental portico supported by fluted, Ionic columns, creates such a stately presence for the early house on the street. In the early 20th century, the mansion was owned by Rutherford Trowbridge, who renovated the house for his own use. The house remained in the Trowbridge family until the death of his last daughter, Miss C. Rachel Trowbridge, when the estate became the property of Yale University.

Pritchard House // 1836

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One of the earliest houses built on Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven, Connecticut, is this stately Greek Revival mansion with monumental portico. The house was built in 1836 for Mary Pritchard from plans by great American architect, Alexander Jackson Davis. The mansion is two stories and is constructed of brick and stucco with a distinct two-story portico supported by fluted Corinthian columns. The architect also may have designed a barn at the rear of the house for Ms. Pritchard. Like many other former residences on Hillhouse Avenue, the house was acquired by Yale University, and is now the house of the Provost.

Elias Gates House // 1843

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In 1843, Elias Gates (1801-1886) a young farmer, purchased land from the family of his wife, Mary A. Stedman, and had this handsome brick, Greek Revival style house built. The family would reside here less than ten years, and relocate to Albany, where Elias worked as a bookseller. The house was purchased numerous times throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, and operated as a farmhouse until much of the land was sold and subdivided for new housing. The Gates House is a great example of the Greek Revival style with a side hall plan, recessed entry with original sidelights and transom, and bold facade with brick pilasters dividing the bays with brick entablature and gable end facing the street.

William H. Harrison House // c.1850

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In about 1850, William Hopkins Harrison (1813-1878) purchased farmland from the Pierce Family of Cornwall, Connecticut, and built this stately Greek Revival style home upon it. The house was built around the same time as its neighbor, the Dwight W. Pierce House (last post), also an example of the Greek Revival style, but in a very different finish. The seven-bay residence has its main block at the end with a shallow hip roof and overhanging eaves, showcasing the emergence of the Italianate style form to come into popularity. The solidly Classical pilaster and entablature surround at the entry firmly places the house in the Greek Revival style.

Israel Snow House // c.1850

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The Israel Snow House stands at 9 Water Street in the South End of Rockland, Maine, and it is one of the region’s finest examples of late Greek Revival architecture. The residence was built for Captain Israel Snow (1801-1875), a mariner and captain of several vessels, including the schooner Maria (1829), the brig Snow (1835-36), the brig Lucy Ann (1842), and the Barque Star (1848). In 1850, he and his wife Lucy moved from Thomaston to Rockland, and he would build this stately mansion where they raised seven children. Some records put the construction of this house at 1861, but that seems very late for such an example of this style. In 1863, he founded Snow’s Point Shipyard on Mechanic Street in the South End. Rockland was the fourth largest seaport in the United States in terms of production and commerce at the time, and Snow’s shipyard was a large part of that production. This residence is now offices to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex.