USA > Maine > Waldo County > Belfast > History of the city of Belfast in the state of Maine v.I, 1770-1875 > Part 20
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C
HOUSE OF ROBERT MILLER. BUILT ABOUT 1792.
High and Miller Streets, and now occupied by Mr. A. J. Condon. According to the most reliable information that can be obtained,
207
BUILDINGS.
the latter is the oldest dwelling-house remaining in the city proper. A few modifications have somewhat changed its ex- terior. The accompanying view omits them.
Next to this house came that of John Durham, which stood near the site of the New England House. In 1852, it was re- moved to the rear, to make room for the brick tenements then erected.
:D, HOWARD FURNITURE WARE HOUSE
ELFAST
BUILDING ON "NESMITH'S CORNER." BUILT 1799.
At the corner of Main Street, where the stores of David Lan- caster and J. C. Thompson are situated, stood a large two-story building, erected in 1799, by James Nesmith, and occupied by him as a dwelling and a store. It was burnt in the night of Dec. 29, 1854. The engraving given herewith is reduced from a wood-cut made in 1844, after the old-fashioned chimneys and hipped roof had been superseded by those of modern construction.
In 1800, Main Street, above this point, boasted of but two buildings, viz., the Hopkins house, now occupied by S. A. Howes & Co., and a dwelling-house of one story, which stood on the site of the American House. The former dates from that year. A portion of the lumber composing it was cut in Readfield or Win- throp, and brought by water from Hallowell. This building was originally located upon a bank, some twelve feet above the present level of High Street. It was let down many years ago, and the bank removed. A view of it on a subsequent page shows its ap- pearance before being converted into a store. The basement story was enlarged, and the exterior improved, in 1859. The dwelling-house last-mentioned was the first framed structure
208
HISTORY OF BELFAST.
erected on the street, being built in 1795, by Dr. John S. Osborn. A portion, used as a shop, stands on Beaver Street. On the spot now covered by City Block was a small building in which Nes- mith traded for a short time before the completion of his store on the opposite corner. This was subsequently sold to John Haraden, and converted into an L, for his house on Church Street, where it still remains. Directly north was a one-story dwelling also owned by Nesmith, at this time probably occupied by Baptist Gilmore, his brother-in-law.
On the northern side of Main Street, the next building was a small honse owned by Reuben Kimball, on the site of the store now occupied by Edward A. Perry. It was demolished in 1846, to arrest the progress of the fire that destroyed the "Babel." Next below, about where the Sanborn house stands, came the house of James Badger. Then, near the railroad depot, on Sandy Beach, was a house owned by Benjamin Smith. On the southern side of Main Street, below Nesmith's Corner, Jonathan Basford had a small place of residence, in the rear of where the Granite Block stands. At or near the junction of Federal and Cross Streets stood the houses of Lemuel Weeks and John Huse. Below, and the last building, was the Wiggins Merrill house, afterwards owned by John Merriam, which occupied the site of Martin P. White's store. It was subsequently removed farther down, and used by P. and E. T. Morrill, as their store. When the tax lists of 1800 were made, the whole number of buildings within the limits first mentioned did not exceed twenty-five.
During the next five years, the population on the western side of the river largely increased, and a corresponding number of buildings were erected. The two leading highways received their present designations of High and Main Streets ; and Market Street, leading from the Davistown road to Sandy Beach, was opened and named. A plan of the "village" in 1805, which is given on the next page, exhibits the location of all the buildings at that date. Including barns and shops, there were seventy-six. On High Street, in addition to those already named, was the house of Jonathan Quimby, which is still standing at the corner of Spring Street ; and directly opposite stood his blacksmith's shop. Next came the house of Captain John Lymburner, afterwards owned by his grandson, Rev. John L. Locke, built in 1803, and having a flat roof. Next to that, on land now covered by build- ings belonging to the Belfast Livery Company, John Moor had a
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BUILDINGS.
shop. A portion of the Telegraph Block, occupied as a store and dwelling-house by Edmund Brown and Simon D. McDonald, stood at the corner, as at present, but on elevated ground. Many
D.HIBBARD
TOWN LANDING
AUSS' WHARF
SCARY
MANSUR S WHARF
E.COLBURN A.EDMUNDE
OL J MANSUR
ALOTHADA
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8. SMITH 1
T.BARTLETT
LA VÀCKSON
APOLLOS ALDEN
K.B. FOSTER
AL. BADGER
0
D
MERS MI KINLEY
W.MOODY
0
JOHN MERRIAM J.COVELL
JOHN HUSE
F. ANDERSON JOHN RUSS
LEMUEL NEERS
T HUBBARD
0
B.PALMER
17
0
CIGOLE
S.PFIELD'S OFFICE S LONGFELLOW
F.GILES
SAMUEL PIERCE
CROSBY S OFFICE
U.CASSIN
G.HOPKINS
JAMES NESMITH
MAIN
JONN DURHAM
DAVISTOWN ROAD
LAPOOR'S SHOP
J.QUIMBY'S SHOP
WILLIAN CROSBY
CHATHAN QUIMBY
ROBERT MILLER
GRAVE YARD
BELFAST VILLAGE.
1805.
LEADING ROAD FROM SANDY BEACH TO LITTLE RIVER
SMILLEA
O
B
J.MILLER'S BARN
MEETING-HOUSE
SCHOOL - ROUGE
CMT FARLAND
FORSELL -NEKIRDECNF ROSTEN
STREET
TNOS. WHITTIER
HIGH
STREET
DA. C. C.CHANOLLA
STREET
MARKET
AR VANN S. OSECA Y
SANDY BEACH
JOHN LYM BURNER
years afterwards, the bank on the High Street side was removed, and the cellar converted into a grocery store. Southerly of the Hopkins house, on the opposite corner was the square one-story office of William Crosby, where the brick store of Arnold Harris
14
210
HISTORY OF BELFAST.
now stands. This office was built in 1802, in the midst of stumps and fallen trees: it was burnt in 1866. Next beyond it came the dwelling-house of Paul Giles, afterwards owned by John An- gier, and still standing, with the addition of a basement. A short distance to the west, the street diverged a little, leaving on the left the house of Dr. Osborn, before mentioned, and then wound its way up the hill, passing the house of Thomas Whittier, subse- quently the homestead of the late Alfred W. Johnson. While Mr. Whittier lived in the latter house, it was occupied as a hotel. It was built in 1801. Next beyond the Whittier house stood a two-story dwelling, built by Dr. Underwood, and afterwards owned successively by Thomas Whittier, 2d, and Captain Robert Patterson, 4th. Its location was upon the premises of Charles B. Hazeltine, who removed it in 1859 to make room for his house, erected that year. Some idea of the estimated value of real estate in that section of the town in 1805 may be gathered from the fact that the price then paid for the house lot, with the house and barn on it, finished and in good condition, and twenty acres of land in the rear of it, the lot next northerly from Grove Cemetery a portion of which is now within the cemetery, was one thousand dollars.1
The foregoing comprised all the buildings on High Street. On Main Street, above where the American House stands, the only house was that occupied by Judge Crosby, now the residence of his son, Ex-Governor Crosby. It was built in 1803, by John Milliken, who sold it before it was completed, and removed to Davistown. With the exception of the cleared land in the vicin- ity of the corner, - Nesmith's Corner it was called, the point where High and Main Streets intersect, - and the further exception of a strip of land bordering on the river on its eastern side, and an occasional " clearing " of a few acres on the roads leading through and from the village, the entire territory of the town was covered by the original, unbroken forest. On that portion through which Church Street now passes, and on a strip of land lying on each side of Main Street as far westerly as Wilson's Hill, although the forest trees had been felled and the land partially cleared up, the stumps of the trees were still remaining. On that portion through which Cedar, Congress, Miller, indeed all the streets lying southerly of Main Street and westerly of Court Street now run, the forest was untouched, save here and there where a little fire-wood had been
1 Crosby's Annals.
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BUILDINGS.
cut. The stumps were still standing on the premises now occu- pied by the post-office, the Unitarian and Universalist Churches, the brick school-houses, and the buildings standing in their vicin- ity ; and indeed the list might be enlarged so as to embrace the front or back yard of nearly every dwelling-house in the village. It was no unusual occurrence for the good men, and women also, of those days, to sit up o' nights to watch the burning stumps in their door-yards, regarding it essential for the safety of their dwellings so to do.1
Next below Nesmith's Corner stood two buildings, occupied for the double purpose of stores and dwellings: one, by Reuben Derby ; and the other, by James Cassin. Then, where the Granite block is situated, came the store and house of Captain Samuel Pierce, afterwards occupied by Ladd and Morrill ; and, adjoining, a small building occupied by Stephen Longfellow. Immediately below was the office of Bohan P. Field. The houses of Weeks, Huse, and Merrill, have been already mentioned. Farther down, and the last one on that side of the street, was a two-story house on the site of the brick store of Newell Mansfield, occupied by William Moody : it was burnt in the great fire of 1865. A few rods easterly, away from any road, Judah Covell had a small tene- ment. North of the Moody house stood a building, erected by John Milliken, in which John Angier had a store. It was after- wards known as Sargent's Bake-house, and later as the Farmer's Inn. The store of L. A. Knowlton covers its site. Below the Milliken building stood a small house owned by Levi Jackson.
Returning up Main Street, Dr. C. C. Chandler had a residence, and Oliver Rouse a hatter's shop, in the small buildings already mentioned as standing on the site of City Block in 1800. A few feet below, where. Thomas W. Pitcher's store is, was the tailor's shop of Elisha Cole. This shop was subsequently removed by Nicholas Phillips to Bridge Street, where it now remains. Next came Reuben Kimball's house. With the exception of this house and the shop last-mentioned, every building that stood on Main Street between High Street and Sandy Beach, in 1805, has at one time and another been destroyed by fire. Where the store of F. M. Lancaster stands was the house of Dr. Thaddeus Hub- bard. Next, and contiguous to each other, were the houses of John Russ and Francis Anderson ; then, the Furber house, just above the shoe factory, occupied by Mrs. Mckinley ; and below it
1 Crosby's Annals.
1
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
the houses of James Badger, Nathan B. Foster, and William Hobbs. The latter was occupied as a tavern in 1805. In 1810, it became the property of Edward Cremer, and was afterwards known as the Cremer house. Jonathan Wilson subsequently owned it. There was a large hall in the building, known as Wil- son's Hall. South of the tavern stood the blacksmith's shop of . Ansel Lothrop, on the site now occupied by Henry Wyman. The house adjoining, afterwards the residence of Captain Isaac Clark, was partially finished. Thomas Bartlett was its builder and owner. Opposite the Hobbs house, and near the town landing, stood tbe house and store of Asa Edmunds; then the store and house of E. Colburn ; and near it, the Ferry House, so called, occupied by Daniel Hibbard, who was at that time the ferryman. There were two wharves, Russ's, now forming a part of Lewis's, and John Mansur's, just beyond. Mansur's house was at the head of the latter wharf, and near it stood a store-house. At the foot of the hill, on Market Street, stood and still stand the Smith and Webster I houses. The latter is known as the " Aqueduct House." North-westerly, the house of Apollos Alden had just been com- menced.
H.J.ANDERSON
THE "BABEL," AND BUILDINGS AT THE CORNER OF MAIN AND HIGH STREETS, 1825.
In 1806, the first building of three stories here, a lofty, ill- proportioned wooden block, containing three stores, and known as the "Babel," was erected by James Nesmith, Samuel Walton, and Nathaniel Stanley, on the northern side of Main Street. It 1 This house was burnt in 1875.
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BUILDINGS.
occupied the site of the stores now occupied by Manley E. Dodge, William C. Marshall, and B. C. Dinsmore & Son, as well as a por- tion of the street in front, which was then much narrower than at present. The engraving herewith given was made from a pencil sketch drawn by James Emery, of Bucksport, and represents por- tions of Main and High Streets, as they appeared about the year 1825. At that time, the first store in the block at the left was occupied by Joseph Lee and J. Freeman, the middle one by Stephen Longfellow, and the lower one by Colonel Stanley. In the third story of the middle store was Masonic Hall. The re- mainder of the building was unfinished. A room over the upper store was at one time used by the Methodists for religious ser- vices.1 In 1833, the structure was lowered by taking out the base- ment. It was burnt Oct. 24, 1846. Next below the Babel, on the left, was the dwelling-house and store built by Benjamin Palmer, in 1806, afterwards owned by James Cook, which per- ished in the same fire that destroyed the former building. The next building below was the house of Reuben Kimball. Above the Babel stood a small store, afterwards removed to Bridge Street. At the corner of High Street, on the site of the City Block, was a wooden building, occupied by Joseph Williamson as an office, and by Hugh J. Anderson as a store. Directly north came the dwelling-house built by James Nesmith : it was burnt Jan. 25, 1850.
Before the close of 1809, a large number of dwelling-houses were erected, the most prominent of which are the following: On High Street, that now occupied by Rev. Wooster Parker, built by Dr. C. C. Chandler ; that afterwards owned by James Miller, built by Thomas Cunningham, and for many years known as the " Pumpkin," or Sun tavern; that opposite the Baptist Church, built by John Moor, occupied by Joseph Williamson, from 1820 to 1845, and now owned by J. C. Thompson; the Eells house, built by Benjamin Eells, afterwards transformed into the New England House; that directly west of the North Church, built by John Russ ; and that built by Bohan P. Field, now occupied by his son, Benjamin F. Field. On Main Street, the house now owned by John N. Stewart was built by Samuel Peck. That of Moses W. Rich, long the residence of Dr. Hollis Monroe, was built by Wiggins Merrill. The next one above, for many years owned by Hon. James White, and now by Alden D. Chase, was built by
1 William Quimby.
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
John B. Durham. That now occupied by Rila Kittridge and Samuel G. Howard, and the Edmunds house, next westerly,
--
3
HOUSE ERECTED BY BOHAN P. FIELD, 1807.
were both built by Alvan Edmunds; and a large, imposing-looking house at the top of the hill was built by Hon. John Wilson. The latter was burnt in April, 1867: all the others remain. Many of them are so changed by additions or improvement as to have lost their original appearance. In 1810, the Leach house, at the corner of Bridge and Church Streets, now owned by Oakes An- gier, was built by Andrew Leach : the basement was used as a store. The same year, two wooden stores which covered the site of the brick ones on Main Street now occupied by E. C. Hilton, and Carle & Morison, were erected by Lewis Bean, and occupied by him and by Andrew Derby. They were destroyed in the great fire of 1865. The house on Wilson's Hill, afterwards the residence of Captain William Avery, was built in 1811, by John Durham.
The war of 1812 suspended nearly all building operations. A frame which had been got out at Poor's Mills, by John T. Poor, for his own residence, was purchased by Ralph C. Johnson, and used in the construction of the house which he occupied for over half a century. It was raised in July, 1812, the same day that intelligence of a declaration of war with Great Britain reached
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BUILDINGS.
here. This was the first house in town that had outside blinds. They were made by Samuel Burkmar, and still do good service.
From the restoration of peace until 1820, many improvements in the village took place. In 1816, Ralph C. Johnson erected the large wooden building since encased in brick, and known as the Phoenix House. When built, the lower story was finished for stores. Mr. Johnson occupied the southwardly, and Benjamin Whittier the northerly store. In the latter, the post-office was awhile kept. Judge Alfred Johnson had an office in the second story, and continued to occupy the same room until 1829. Opposite this building, at the corner of Market Street, George W. Webster erected a wooden store in 1817. The second story was first used for the custom-house. This building was subsequently purchased by John Haraden, and after being removed to where the Savings Bank now stands, and occupied as a store from 1831 to 1849, was again removed to Church Street, and converted into a dwelling- house, the same now occupied by E. C. Hilton. In 1817, the house west of Peirce's block, where Edwin Salmond lives, was built by John S. Kimball. It was the first building on Church Street, which had been accepted to Spring Street the year pre- vious. The next building on Church Street was the dwelling- house of Manasseh Sleeper, built in 1818 : it is now occupied by Dr. David P. Flanders. All the territory through which Church Street runs, as far as the academy, was then a pasture : access to the Unitarian Church, built that year, was at first difficult, by reason of stumps and knolls. The house at the corner of Miller Street, now occupied by Daniel Lane and Dr. John G. Brooks, was the third one erected on Church Street. It was built in 1821 by Captain William Avery: he resided there until 1833. Three brick stores, the first here, were built in 1821, on the site of the present granite block on Main Street, by Ladd and Morrill. They were partially destroyed by fire in 1844.
The brick block on Main Street, now owned by Woods, Mathews, and Baker, was built in 1823, by Captain David Whit- tier and Captain, now Admiral, Joseph Smith, both then resident here. The northerly store was first occupied by the builders ; the southerly, by John Clark, who now lives in China, Michigan. The two upper stories were finished into dwelling-houses, and were first occupied by Messrs. Whittier and Clark.
The year 1824 was marked by the erection of a large number of buildings, both private and public. Among them were the Eagle
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
Hotel, now the American House, the Town Hall, now the High School-house, the distillery, Phoenix Row, and the Bean and Derby block, at the corner of Main and Cross Streets. All these were constructed of brick. The block last-named consisted of two stores and two dwelling-houses, and was built by Lewis Bean and Andrew Derby. Messrs. Washburn and Eastman were the first occupants of the upper store, and Joshua Pickard of the lower one. On the site of the former now stands the store of Conant & Co. : that of the latter is vacant. The entire building was consumed in the great fire of 1865. Phoenix Row, erected on a portion of the territory burned over in November, 1823, was completed in the fall of the year, and the larger portion of it was immediately occupied. The first tenants of the six stores were as follows : No. 1, John Angier ; No. 3, Foss & Lothrop; No. 5, Benjamin Hazeltine ; No. 7, Peter H. Smith; No. 9, John S. Kimball ; No. 11, James Langworthy. The only one of the number now living is Jeremiah Lothrop, who has for many years resided in New York. In the third story of No. 5 was Phoenix Hall. Under one of the corners of Phoenix Row was deposited a box, containing among other articles a bottle of brandy, a copy of the first newspaper published here, and several coins.
The principal dwelling-houses erected in 1824 were that on High Street, now occupied by George F. White, built by Benja- min Hazeltine; the brick one nearly opposite, built by Hutson Bishop, and now owned by Ex-Governor Anderson ; that at the corner of Church and Miller Streets, built and occupied by Nathaniel H. Bradbury; that on the adjoining lot, owned by William Moody, and occupied subsequently by his son-in-law, the late General J. W. Webster ; and the brick house on the same street, now owned by Colonel Hiram Chase. The latter, which was the residence of Rufus B. Allyn, from 1841 until his death in 1857, was built by John Clark.
" Mechanics Row," a portion of the building on High Street, now occupied by the Belfast Livery Company, was erected by William White in 1825. About the same time, Frederick A. Lewis built the brick house at the corner of Church and Pine Streets ; and Henry Peaks, now of Chicago, that on the adjoining lot, now owned by George R. Sleeper. The Frye Hall house, now owned by M. B. Dodge, and the Farrow house, which occu- pied the site of the Congregational parsonage, were also built by Mr. Peaks.
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BUILDINGS.
In 1829, the brick school-house on the common, the county jail, and jailer's house were erected ; also the brick block at the corner of Main and Church Streets, now occupied by Alden D. Chase and Augustus Perry; the " Fire Proof " block on High Street, now occupied by Henry L. Lord, George R. Sleeper, and. others ; and the store on Main Street, now occupied by E. & L. L. Robbins. The first two blocks were built by Joseph Williamson, the last by William Crosby. James W. Webster was the first tenant of the corner store on Church Street. Dr. Richard Moody had his office in the second story, and Messrs. Chase & Sibley occupied the adjoining store. The eight offices in the Fire Proof were first occupied by the proprietor, by the Register of Probate, Clerk of the Courts, and Register of Deeds, in the southern sec- tion : the other section contained the post-office, and the law offices of Alfred Johnson, Rufns B. Allyn, and Hiram O. Alden, Esqs. The Waldo Bank, and subsequently the Belfast Bank, were afterwards kept in this building, each apartment of which was furnished with a substantial brick vault. The first tenant of Judge Crosby's store was P. R. Hazeltine. William G. Crosby had an office in the second story. The two brick stores above the last were built the following year, by Judge Crosby. James B. Norris and Charles F. Angier were the first tenants.
The brick stores on Main Street, now owned by John S. Cald- well and Henry H. Forbes, were erected in 1834. They occupied the site of two wooden ones which were burnt that year. Thorn- dike & Carle's store, and that of Benjamin F. Wells, were built in 1839. Including these, there were then nineteen brick stores in the village, and three public buildings of brick.
From 1839 to 1850, many first-class dwelling-houses were built. Their number comprises nearly all, excepting Captain McFarland's, on High and Church Streets, from their junction near Allyn Street, as far north as Peach Street.
But few changes in the business part of the village took place for several years after 1839. The sketch of High Street, given herewith, is copied from a drawing made by James Emery, now of Bucksport, which was lithographed in 1843. It was taken from the Telegraph Block, where he then had a jeweller's shop. The first building on the right was occupied by Martin P. White ; next to that the millinery establishment of Mrs. Lewis F. Shepherd ; then "Johnson and Sleeper's Green Store," which was removed about twenty feet north in 1847, and is now occupied by Calvin
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
Hervey. Then came the millinery store of Mrs. M. B. Towne, and the wooden building now owned by George G. Wells, then occupied by W. S. Brannagan. Phoenix Row and the next build- ing are but little changed. The Phoenix House would hardly be recognized. The small dwelling-house beyond has been long re- moved. The Porter, Field, and Johnson houses appear the same as they did thirty years ago. On the left hand is the old Huse Tavern, now occupied as a store by S. A. Howes & Co .; then the " Fire Proof" block, and a wooden store north of it, which was partially burnt in 1866. The Angier house at that time stood upon a bank, with trees and shrubbery in front. A monument beyond indicates the marble manufactory of Aaron Clark. The " man on horseback" was intended by the artist to represent Daniel Lane, Jr.
On the 27th of November, 1845, the sale at auction of the land at the corner of Main and High Streets, now covered by the McClintock Block, the Johnson Block, and the store of Calvin Hervey, for $5,330, prepared the way for erecting permanent buildings on that prominent business locality. The property was owned by Nathaniel R. Sturgis, of Boston. Rufus B. Allyn became its purchaser.
In 1844, the three brick stores next above the American House were built by Furber and Bean, Joshua Pickard, and James P. White, who were the first occupants.
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