USA > Maine > Kennebec County > Augusta > Historical notes on Augusta, Maine > Part 8
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No. 78 Apartment House - Next to Lithgow Library.
This old house is shown as the Nickerson house in 1838. In 1839 Ephraim Nickerson conveyed the place to Bethia Nickerson of
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Strong. In 1850 the place is marked " Darius Alden". Bethia Nick- erson conveyed to Bethia Alden, wife of Darius Alden, in 1853. She sold the place to Lydia Scruton in 1864 and Mrs. Scruton willed the place to her daughter, Carrie Morton, the wife of Charles P. Morton, in 1911. Afterwards the place was sold to Mrs. Persis Martin in 1914. On the 1875 map it is shown to be the residence of Dr. John O. Webster who had an office at the Cushnoc House, next door. He read medicine with Dr. George E. Brickett and graduated from Harvard Medical School. He practiced in Lynn, Massachusetts, then Augusta and removed to California in 1892. It would appear that in the 1870's and 80's most of the Augusta physi- cians located on State Street or Winthrop Street. At that time could be found Doctors Hill, Webster, Crooker and Briggs in that vicinity. Dr. William L. Thompson was located at the corner of State and Green Streets where the Oblate Fathers' Retreat now is. Dr. Scott Hill was in the office building next to the Kennebec Savings Bank. The old time physician often " read " medicine with a practicing physician, which consisted of accompanying him on his visits, instruction in compounding drugs and finally a course of several terms in a medical school under the sponsorship of his mentor. The catalog for Bowdoin College Medical School for 1856 states that all candidates for the de- gree of Doctor of Medicine must have devoted three years to their medical studies under the direction of a regular practitioner of medi- cine and must have attended two full courses of medical lectures in that or some other institution and the last course in Bowdoin. If they have not received a "Collegial Education", they must satisfy the Faculty of their proficiency in the Latin Language and Natural Philosophy. Some early physicians and surgeons deferred taking a degree until they began to practice in larger towns and cities. As soon as they began to acquire a good reputation they started to charge for their services and it was not uncommon to collect in advance. One old time doctor, it is related, upon arriving in the presence of his patient took out a little black book and after pocket- ing the half-dollar fee customary in such cases would write the patient's name down in the book and then suddenly demand, “Stick out your tongue." Another man called on to treat a family of eight would ask two dollars in advance for his services; that was a bargain and it would seem that "it was cheaper by the dozen." Seriously, however, the old time family physician was hard working, his time never his own and because of his literary attainments was regarded
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as a pillar of learning. His horse and buggy were a familiar sight on the streets and roads of the day. As soon as the automobile began to be practical, the doctors were quick to avail themselves of their advantages. One local old timer after experimenting with a horseless carriage endowed it with the intelligence of the horse and after getting into his stable, shouted "Whoa", but the contraption kept right on and did not stop until stalled by the barn wall. After that it is said that the worthy doctor had his gardener instructed in the mysteries of auto-locomotion and all went well.
Lithgow Library - Corner State and Winthrop Streets.
The history of this building and that of the old Tavern which stood on its site is related in the "Historical Notes on Winthrop Street."
State Street crosses. . .
No. 96 to No. 98 State Street - Stores and Apartments.
This business block of three stories was built by Isaac Bennett in 1889. He had a restaurant in this block as well as one on Water Street in 1892. Various types of business have occupied the stores. At one time there was a grocery store, a drug store which burned out, offices, barber shop, and variety stores. In the early part of this century a variety store was kept by "Bennie " Piper, a hunchback who came from an old Augusta family. His specialty was penny candy. In 1906 the drug store was run by Walter D. Stebbins and Company. At one time Frank J. Ham, who later became Warden of the State Prison and Collector of Internal Revenue, had a grocery store there. A number of apartments are in the second and third stories. The building has been owned by the Fuller-Holway Com- pany for some time. In 1838 a building is shown on this spot, occupied by S. Packard and Company. Advertisements of the era reveal them to be furniture dealers. A building on this spot, marked A. and W. Sprague Company who controlled the Edwards Mills at that time, is shown on the 1879 map.
Apartment House - Corner State and Court Streets.
This house is said to have been the Vose house which stood on the site of the Percy Hill Mansion at No. 125 State Street. Prior to the placement of this building on this site there was an old grocery store numbered 106 State and kept by C. R. Dunham. The
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building was originally the second courthouse which was erected in 1801 on the site of the present jail. It served as a courthouse until the erection of the present one in 1829. It was a Baptist Chapel and then used as an amusement hall. When the new jail was erected it was moved to the south side of the lot and finally found its place across the street. The early part of this century it caught fire and was badly gutted, so was torn down.
Court Street crosses. . . .
No. 144 Lawyers' Offices.
This was once the home of Dr. J. F. Hill, who later became Governor of Maine. This house as well as No. 116 and No. 118 were built by P. O. Vickery after the Mansion House, an old hotel, was burned. In 1935, No. 114 was the home of Elizabeth Ballantyne and in 1952 the store and home of the late Edward Page, interior decorator.
No. 116 State - Barber Shop.
This former dwelling house, similar in size and design to the others, was the home of Dr. Monroe Beverly, osteopathic physician, in 1952.
No. 118 State - Maine Heart Fund and Other Offices.
This at one time was the residence of Benjamin Cote. Ben Cote, as he was usually called, was a business man who formerly lived in the northern part of Augusta and who, it is said, invented Cote's Magic Water, a cleaning compound, which was locally famous for years. He was also representative to the Legislature.
The Mansion House, which occupied the better part of these three lots, was built in 1803 by Timothy Page for a hotel to accom- modate people in attendance on the courts. The map of 1838 shows the hotel as Barker's Mansion House and back of the hotel, which fronted State Street, are large stables and barns. In the City Di- rectory for 1867 there is an advertisement of the hostelry with an illustration of it. It showed a three and one-half story building with a hip roof and portico running lengthwise of State Street. It further stated "Free carriages to and from the cars and boats and that tran- sient board was two dollars a day." The hotel burned in 1877 and P. O. Vickery of Vickery and Hill acquired the site and in a few years built the houses just mentioned. In 1867 besides the Mansion House and Augusta House, there were the Central House on the
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corner of Western Avenue and State; the Eastern Exchange on Cony Street at the east end of the Kennebec Bridge, and the Farmer's Hotel on the northern end of Water Street. During the legislative session there was a shortage of rooms and many legislators were put up in private homes. It was remarked that the first week's board was very good at these homes, but the succeeding weeks left much to be desired. Due to difficulties in transportation these days, legis- lators stayed in Augusta practically the whole session. At that time there was transportation by railroad to central points, but the stages still did a good business to the out-of-way places. Mail coaching was in its palmiest days just before 1840 and until the railroad got to Bangor the stage was of more importance than the railroad from Portland. Leaving Augusta or Bangor each day at seven A.M. the destination was reached in the early evening. A change of horses was made at Vassalboro after a short, sharp drive from Augusta, then again at China, then at Unity and about every few miles until Bangor was reached. The same horses were changed and driven back by the same driver the next day on his return trip; seventeen horses were kept at Vassalboro and this was the average number for each station. Shaw and Billings were the proprietors of this run and they used rich equipment, and two or three spans of well matched horses to each coach. The drivers were men of note these days and he who could handle six horses and safely make the scheduled time was held in greater esteem than the proprietors. It was a great sight to see the heavily laden Concord coaches rocking their way through hill and dale to the crack of the whip. In the 1840's there was much competition between rival Boston boat lines. In the spring the fare, which ordinarily was a dollar, dropped to twenty-five cents to Boston from river points. At one time there were locks in the Kennebec Dam and several small steamers ran to Waterville and they often raced in their severe competition. This practice culminated in May, 1848 when the steamer "Halifax" burst her boiler while going through the locks and killed six people. With the perfection of railroad service the river boats began to fall off. By the 1890's the river traffic, it is said, consisted chiefly of lumber and ice schooners and coal barges. Limited passenger serv- ice to the mouth of the Kennebec and to Boston disappeared in the 1930's. An occasional oil tanker finds its way to Hallowell and soon after the Second World War a Navy LST was docked in Gardiner. Quite recently grain barges have been docked at Farmingdale which
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have been towed from the Great Lakes. In recent years there has been a revival of yachting and the river has been the scene of out- board motor racing.
No. 122 State Street, Corner Weston Street - Residence.
This old time mansion, recently purchased by Gordon Drew, was the home of the late Marie Williams, widow of Joseph Williams of the firm of Stewart and Williams, who died during the Second World War. On the 1838 map it is noticed as the home of Dr. Southwick. Dr. Edward Southwick came to Vassalboro from Dan- vers, Massachusetts and established a tannery there in 1820 and bought the water privileges in that town. At the height of his prosperity, John D. Lang, who came from Providence, Rhode Island, bought the tannery and established a woolen mill. In the 1830's Edward Southwick had a store in Augusta where he sold leather. In the directory of 1867 the name of Eliza Fowler, who was the widow of Captain Miles Fowler, who died in 1852, appears as the resident. Subsequently the name of Mrs. Maria Fowler Fuller ap- pears in the 1884 directory as living with Mrs. Fowler. Mrs. Fuller was the widow of Henry W. Fuller, a druggist whose father, Eben Fuller, founded a business which was carried on as the Fuller Drug Store until the present century. Henry Fuller was in business for over fifty years. He was born in 1827 and died in 1875. As a boy he lived in the Eben Fuller homestead on Crosby Street, which is the Girls' Community Club and is found on the 1838 map. In the 1867 directory the names of E. Fuller and Son; Hight and Deering; J. S. Johnson; Frank W. Kinsman; Charles K. Partridge; Titcomb and Dorr on Water Street and William C. Simmons at Court and State Streets, are found. In 1884 the names of George W. Allen and Company as carrying on Kinsman's Drug Store at the corner of Bridge and Water Street, an old stand which continued under the management of B. Earle Bither and finally after the First World War known as Carroll's; Bowditch and Webster; Devine and Coughlin; Fuller Drug Store; Gilman and Company; Partridge Bros. on Water Street and C. H. Guppy on State Street, appear. To return to No. 122 State Street, Mrs. Fuller lived here after the death of Mrs. Fowler. She was well known as a member of the old First Baptist Church. She willed the homestead to the Augusta General Hospital. The present owner bought the place from the Williams estate in 1958.
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No. 124 Residence of Dr. Napoleon Gingras.
This charming old home, known for many years as the Lithgow mansion, was purchased from the Lithgow heirs in 1926 by Mrs. Vallie B. Williamson, widow of Joseph Williamson of the law firm of Williamson and Burleigh. Mrs. Williamson was the daughter of Governor E. C. Burleigh and her husband was a grandnephew of William D. Williamson, Governor of Maine in 1821 and author of a "History of Maine". He was a distinguished lawyer and resigned the office of governor to accept election to Congress.
Dr. Gingras acquired the home in 1946. It is shown as the residence of James Child in 1838 and is pictured on the Searle sketch of Augusta made in 1823. James Child was born in Groton, Massa- chusetts in 1792 and made a fortune in the tanning business which he set up on the north side of lower Winthrop Hill. His activities are noticed in the historical notes on Winthrop Street. He had seven children, one of whom, Elisha, carried on the tannery and married Marcia H. Palmer in 1822. They had several children, among them Paulina Palmer, born in 1830, who married Llewellyn W. Lith- gow, a retired business man from Pittston. He was a nephew of the first sheriff of Kennebec County, Arthur Lithgow. He died in 1881 and left $20,000 for the purpose of building a public library and made the city residuary trustee of about $15,000 to establish a building fund. The Library was named for him and with the help of other contributions, including one from Andrew Carnegie, was made possible. Mrs. Lithgow survived her husband for many years.
No. 128 State Street - Law Offices and Apartments.
This old residence is noticed on the 1838 map as the home of B. Davis who came to Augusta in 1814 and was a clerk in the store of John S. Kimball. He became a trader and subsequently a fire insurance agent acting for many New England companies. He was President of the Freeman's Bank for 25 years. He married Caroline North, daughter of John North. He had two sons, one of whom, Ben- jamin Gardiner Davis, was in business with him and lived in the pater- nal home. Benjamin Davis died at the age of 85 in 1875. His son died in 1879, aged 54. In the 1884 directory Mrs. A. Maria Davis, his widow, is shown living here and also as a partner of Davis, Farr and Company, Insurance. In the 1892 directory the name of James W. Welch, superintendent of a paint factory in New York, appears. He was a Colonel of the 19th Maine Regiment and was wounded at
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Gettysburg. He also captured a Southern battle flag at that engage- ment. His daughter Hattie married Rev. Albert C. White, who was pastor of the Winthrop Street Universalist Church in 1882. Sub- sequently the names of Miss Alice Welch, artist, and Miss Elizabeth Welch, stenographer, appear. In 1892 Colonel Welch built one of the first cottages at Lake Cobboseecontee at what is known as Welch's Point. His grandson, Colonel Walter White, graduate of West Point and recently retired from the United States Air Force and now living in East Pittston, says that the cottage has been oc- cupied by members of the Welch family ever since. In 1909 Frank H. Burgess, well known photographer at the time with a studio on Water Street, was residing there. His son, Ralph Norman Burgess, was a graduate of Cony High School and has been living in Tucson, Arizona for many years. After the First World War, William Tudor Gardiner, law partner of Andrews, Nelson and Gardiner, made his home there. He was born in Newton, Massachusetts in 1892, the son of Robert Gardiner of the famous Gardiner family of Gardiner, Maine. He was educated at Groton, Harvard and Harvard Law School. It is said that he was prominent in football while at Har- vard. He enlisted in the Pioneer Infantry in World War One. He was Governor of Maine from 1929 to 1931. He volunteered his services in World War Two and was assigned to Intelligence and was in several adventurous exploits in Italy during the War. He returned to engage in private law practice in Boston. He was killed in a private plane accident a few years ago. Governor Gardiner left the State Street home to live in the Blaine House and William Treby Johnson, retired banker, bought the mansion. He was the son of Treby Johnson, who was the President of the First National Bank. He was born in Augusta in 1884 and was educated at Cony High School and was graduated from Bowdoin College in 1906. He followed the traditional career of his father and grandfather and was cashier of the Bridgton National Bank, Vice President of the First National Granite Bank of Augusta and Cashier and Director in the People's National Bank in Waterville. He was also active in the settlement of the Kling estate. He was a man who lived a very full life and had many friends. He was interested in the history and traditions of his native city and was an inspiration to the writer in his work. His untimely death occurred on March 24, 1960. He sold the State Street place to McLean, Fogg and Southard in 1953.
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No. 132 State Street - Residence of Mrs. Jeanette Downing
This fine old mansion, which was purchased by Charles E. Down- ing from Mrs. John F. Hill before the First World War, was for many years in the Potter family. It is shown on the 1838 map as the residence of J. Potter. John Potter was graduated from Dart- mouth College in 1806, read law in the office of his brother Barrett in Portland and was a partner of Benjamin Whitwell. He was select- man six years and was in the Legislature. He died in 1865, aged 78 years. He married in 1812 Caroline Fox of Portland. Among his children were Barrett Edwards, who graduated from Bowdoin in 1841, and George Fox, who for some time was a dry goods merchant in Augusta. In the 1871 directory the brothers are shown in partner- ship as B. E. Potter and Brother, Bankers. At that time B. E. Potter was living in this house and his brother was living across the street in what is now the Dental Clinic. The widow of B. E. Potter lived in the house for many years.
Charles E. Downing was born in Augusta in 1878, the son of Charles and Susan Downing. He graduated from Cony High School in 1896 and went into his father's business of selling insurance, pianos and organs. He enlarged the business and as time went on modern- ized the musical line to radios and television. He was well known in the business and social life of Augusta. He was one time State Park Commissioner. He married Jeanette Munsey of Wiscasset in 1906. He died in 1959.
Green Street crosses.
No. 136 State, Corner Green - Oblate Fathers' Retreat.
This stately mansion, constructed of St. Louis brick and having a Maine granite portico, was the residence of Governor John F. Hill and was built by him at the turn of this century. It was by far the most imposing home in the city and contained a large ballroom, which was the scene of many social gatherings. John Fremont Hill was born in Eliot in 1855 and was a graduate of Bowdoin Medical School. He came to Augusta and practiced with Dr. Crooker, but soon after he married Lizzie, daughter of P. O. Vickery, and gave up his prac- tice to enter the publishing firm of Vickery and Hill in 1882. His wife died in 1893, leaving a son, Percy Vickery Hill of Augusta. In 1889 Dr. Hill went into politics, serving in the Maine Legislature. He married Mrs. Laura Leggett of St. Louis and they had a daughter Catherine. He was Governor of Maine from 1901 to 1905 and died
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in 1913. His widow and family continued to occupy the house until it was acquired by the Oblate Fathers in 1949.
On the site of this residence stood three houses as shown on the 1875 map. The first on the Green Street corner was the home of Dr. W. L. Thompson, father of Dr. William Thompson, who lived opposite the Augusta House. The second was that of Mrs. Lombard, said to be the widow of W. H. Lombard, grocer. The third house was the residence of Oscar Holway, which was moved to near the A. & P. on Western Avenue. Oscar Holway, born in Fairfield in 1834, went into the wholesale grocery business in Augusta in 1864 and was also President of the First National Bank of Augusta. He had two sons, Melvin A., graduate of Bowdoin and a lawyer in Augusta for many years, and Charles, member of the firm of Oscar Holway of Auburn. Charles had a son Oscar and two daughters, Mrs. Olive Brown and Mrs. Virginia Elwell.
No. 146 State Street - State Grange Office Building.
This old residence was until recently the home of Edward Allen Whitney and has an interesting history. It was built by Samuel Tit- comb, it is said, in the 1790's. He traded in Augusta, was the second Postmaster and one of the surveyors to establish the eastern boundary of the state. Subsequently he moved to Belgrade and built the Titcomb Belgrade Academy. He was the father of Samuel Titcomb Esq., who lived at the corner of Pleasant and Bridge Streets. In 1814 General Henry Sewall, who had been with General George Washington at Valley Forge, bought the house and lived there until his death in 1845. When he first came to Augusta he was a trader, but later went into clerical work. He held the office of Town Clerk for over 35 years and was Clerk of the District Court for 29 years and also Register of Deeds for 17 years. He was active in the State Militia and his title of General came from the fact that he was Major General of the 8th Division. In appearance he was " of large frame and features expressive of firmness" but owing to short bow legs appeared much better on horseback. He was presented with a white charger and it is said that mounted on the white charger he was a familiar sight on the streets, even riding to Boston. He kept a diary from 1773 to 1820 and thus recorded the early history of Augusta. His remains lay in an old plot in the old " Burnt Hill " cemetery. Since the death of General Sewall the residence has been occupied by several families, among them William S. Badger, of the
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" Maine Farmer" and Postmaster in 1853. Colonel Martin Van Buren Chase, veteran of the Civil War, early horticulturist, who landscaped the grounds and who was later President of the Kennebec Savings Bank, lived there in 1884. Subsequently it was the residence of Arthur W. Whitney who at one time was with the E. C. Allen Publishing Company. Edward Charles Allen, the founder of the business, was born in Readfield in 1848. He was educated in the common schools and Kents Hill Seminary. He began his career in Augusta in 1868 where he engaged in the agency and canvassing business. He conceived the idea of publishing an illustrated literary paper and the then entirely novel idea of offering a premium to the subscribers. He issued a monthly publication called the "People's Literary Companion " in 1869, offering as a premium a fine steel engraving, much prized in those days. In 1872 his business had grown to such proportions that he erected the Allen building which stands at the corner of Water and Winthrop Streets. In 1880 he built what is now the Depositors Trust block and at one time it was connected by a subway to the Allen building under Water Street. Both buildings were crowded with facilities for printing books and magazines. At one time the circulation of his various publications amounted to over a million copies. He had sixteen large presses and used 55 tons of white paper each month. Within thirty days of Blaine's nomination for the Presidency he had "The Life of James G. Blaine ", a book of five hundred pages, printed and bound and placed in the hands of his agents. It is said that two hundred thousand copies were sold. The present granite post office which was ranked "first class" in his day was made necessary by the enormous amount of his mail. He died as the result of pneumonia contracted on his 24th transatlantic trip at the age of forty-four years. The business was discontinued after his death and some of the publi- cations were taken over by the Gannett Publishing Company. After the demise of Arthur Whitney, his son, Edward Allen Whitney, oc- cupied the residence, and during World War Two, the house and stable were turned into an emergency hospital equipped with beds and canteen. The State Grange bought the property in 1946 and remodeled it into offices.
No. 150 State Street - Kennebec Savings Bank.
This modern office building was completed in 1959. For many years the bank had maintained offices opposite the Post Office on Water
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Street. It stands on the site of the residence of George W. Macomber, Mayor in 1886-88, banker and insurance agent. He was born in Augusta in 1853 and originated the insurance firm known as Ma- comber, Farr and Whitten. He was active in the Street railroad affairs and was a member of both houses of the Legislature. He had two daughters: one, Ann married Guy Gannett and the other, Alice married the late Roy Bodwell and is living in Boston. After the death of his first wife Mr. Macomber married Mrs. Laura Lewis, formerly of Gardiner. Mr. and Mrs. Macomber presented the city with the World War One Memorial which has a bronze plate in- scribed with the names of Augusta Soldiers and Sailors of that war. This memorial, now in Monument Park, formerly stood on the junc- tion of State and Grove Streets. Also through the generosity of Mr. and Mrs. Macomber, the Macomber playground was made pos- sible. The house was bought from Mrs. Deering, widow of Stephen Deering, wholesale grocer, and extensive alterations were made, so much so that when the house was torn down to make way for the bank it seemed that it was a house within a house.
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