142 Marlborough is located on the south side of Marlborough, between Clarendon and Dartmouth, with 140 Marlborough to the east and 144 Marlborough to the west.

142 Marlborough was built in 1872-1873 by John Fisher Farrington, a carpenter and builder, for speculative sale, one of five contiguous houses (140-142-144-146-148 Marlborough). He had built three contiguous houses in 1871-1872 at 132-134-136 Marlborough. 138 Marlborough was a vacant lot until 1891.

The five houses at 140-148 Marlborough were built on a 121 foot wide parcel that John Farrington acquired in three transactions: a 58 foot wide lot to the east on July 29, 1872, from Francis E. Parker; a 25 foot lot to the west on November 2, 1872, from Louisa (Bronson) Hunnewell, the wife of Hollis Hunnewell; and a 38 foot wide lot between the other two on April 15, 1873, from Joseph Washington Clark.

The land had been held by several owners. It originally was part of six lots purchased from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts: a 24 foot lot to the east purchased on April 11, 1864, by Robert R. Bishop, three 24 foot lots in the middle purchased on April 17, 1864, by George Putnam, Jr., and two 24 foot lots to the west purchased on March 30, 1865, and April 6, 1865, by Peleg Whitman Chandler. On April 8, 1865, Peleg Chandler purchased a third lot, with a 30 foot frontage running to the corner of Marlborough and Dartmouth, and on April 3, 1869, he sold all three of his lots to Louisa Hunnewell. Hollis and Louisa Hunnewell built their home at 315 Dartmouth on the western 53 feet and sold the remaining 25 feet to John Farrington.

Click here for an index to the deeds for 142 Marlborough, and click here for further information about the land between the south side of Marlborough and Alley 424, from Clarendon to Dartmouth.

On August 6, 1874, 142 Marlborough was purchased from John Farrington by Charles S. Parker and his sons, Charles W. Parker and George W. Parker, all iron and slate roofers in the firm of Charles S. Parker & Sons.

On August 24, 1874, 142 Marlborough was purchased from the Parkers by Joseph Cotton Hovey. He was unmarried and lived at 100 Beacon with his recently widowed father, George Otis Hovey. Joseph Hovey was a wholesale dry goods merchant with his father’s firm.

Joseph Hovey died in October of 1874, killed when he fell from a train near Billerica while walking from one car to another.  According to his obituary in the Boston Evening Transcrupt he “had just purchased and furnished a house on Marlborough street, and was in a few days to be married to a daughter of Mr. Edward Motley.”

142 Marlborough was inherited by his surviving siblings, Marion Hovey, Henry Stone Hovey, and Fanny (Hovey) Morse, the wife of John Torrey Morse, Jr.

On November 16, 1874, 142 Marlborough was purchased from Joseph Hovey’s heirs by Elizabeth Olive (Jones) McKay, the wife of leather merchant Joseph Crane McKay. They previously had lived in Brooklyn.

At the time of the 1880 US Census, Elizabeth McKay’s aunt, Pauline Jones, was living with them.

Joseph and Elizabeth McKay continued to live at 142 Marlborough during the 1893-1894 winter season, but moved thereafter to Medford. They continued to own 142 Marlborough and lease it to others.

By the 1894-1895 winter season, 142 Marlborough was the home of Huldah Jane (Roberts) Barrows, the widow of Dr. Joseph Henry Barrows, who operated it as a lodging house.  She previously had lived at 355 Boylston. She also operated a summer resort, the Devereux Mansion, in Marblehead. She continued to live at 142 Marlborough in June of 1900, at the time of the 1900 US Census, but moved soon thereafter to Marblehead.

During the 1900-1901 winter season, 142 Marlborough was the home of Frederick Seth Leonard and his wife, Ruth A. (Colby) Leonard, who operated it as a lodging house.  They had lived in Hingham in June of 1900, at the time of the 1900 US Census, and before that at 249 Berkeley, where they had operated a lodging house.  By 1902, they had resumed living at 249 Berkeley.

By the 1902-1903 winter season, 142 Marlborough was the home of sisters, Miss Elizabeth R. Vanderveer and Miss Margaret S. Vanderveer, who also operated the Elmhurst Day and Boarding School at the house.  They previously had lived in Arlington.  They continued to live and operate the school there during the 1903-1904 season. By 1905, they had moved to Washington DC.

During the 1904-1905 winter season, 142 Marlborough was the home of H. Warren Wheeler, a piano regulator, and his wife, Catherine (Lambert) Wheeler, who operated it as a lodging house.

On January 2, 1905, 142 Marlborough was purchased from Elizabeth McKay by Laurence Minot and Robert H. Gardiner, trustees under the will of William Minot, III, to be the home of William Minot’s son-in-law and daughter, Henry Morse Channing and Katharine (Minot) Channing. They had married in November of 1904 and had lived briefly at 3 Exeter.  They also maintained a home in Sherborn. Henry Channing was an attorney.

Laurence Minot was Katharine Minot’s unmarried uncle and had served as her guardian and as the guardian of her three brothers (William, Vredenburg, and Sedgwick Minot) after their father’s death in November of 1900.  They all had lived at 409 Commonwealth until Katherine Minot’s marriage.  Soon thereafter, he purchased and moved to 24 Marlborough with his three nephews and (as trustee of the Minot estate) purchased 142 Marlborough so that the Channings could live next door.

By 1907, the Channings were joined at 142 Marlborough by Mary Louisa (McCulloh) Mayer Upham, widow of Henry Christian Mayer and Henry Upham.  She had lived at 371 Marlborough in 1906.

The Channings and Mrs. Upham continued to live at 142 Marlborough in 1911.

By the 1911-1912 winter season, the Channings had moved to Sherborn and Mrs. Upham had moved to 381 Marlborough.

142 Marlborough became the home of Katharine (Minot) Channing’s brother, attorney and stockbroker William Minot, and his wife, Lucy Greenleaf (Woodworth) Minot.  They previously had lived at 144 Marlborough with Laurence Minot.

Lucy Minot died in February of 1919. William Minot continued to live at 142 Marlborough and married again in May of 1922 to Elizabeth Chapman.

During the 1922-1923 winter season, Henry and Katharine Channing moved back to 142 Marlborough, sharing the address with the Minots.  They continued to live there during the next season, but then moved to 15 Marlborough for the 1924-1925 season.

During the 1924-1925 winter season, the Minots were joined at 15 Marlborough by Charles Boyden, Jr., a stockbroker, and his wife, Harriet (Ely) Boyden.  They previously had lived at 230 Commonwealth.  By the 1925-1926 season, they had moved to an apartment at the Hotel Agassiz at 191 Commonwealth.

During the 1925-1926 winter season, the Channings were living with the Minots once again.  They had moved to Sherborn by the next season; by the late 1920s, they had moved back to 3 Exeter, where they had lived following their marriage in 1904.

William and Elizabeth Minot continued to live at 142 Marlborough until his death in March of 1937.  They also maintained a home at Wareham.

On July 31, 1939, 142 Marlborough was purchased from the Minot trust by Charles Ripley Lynde, Jr. He lived in Newtonville with his parents, Charles and Helen L. (Fairbanks) Lynde, and was associated with his father’s china and glassware firm.

142 Marlborough was shown as vacant in the 1938-1941 City Directories.

On December 8, 1939, 142 Marlborough was acquired from Charles Lynde, Jr., by Paul Hunt as trustee of a trust established for his benefit and the benefit of his son, William Morris Hunt, II. Paul Hunt was the son of artist William Morris Hunt and his wife, Louisa Dumaresq (Perkins) Hunt. He was an architect and builder. He and his wife, Charlotte Susan (McCracken) Hunt, lived in an apartment at 322 Beacon.

In January of 1940, Paul Hunt applied for (and subsequently received) permission to convert the property from a two-family dwelling into ten apartments.  As part of the remodeling, he lowered the front entrance to street level.

Charlotte Hunt died in April of 1942 and Paul Hunt moved to Brookline, where he died in August of 1949. 142 Marlborough continued to be owned by the Hunt trust, of which William Morris Hunt, II, became trustee and beneficiary. On May 17, 1956, he transferred the property to Lillian B. Moulton to his use.

William Morris Hunt, II, and his wife, Rosamond (PIer) Hunt, lived in Milton and then in Brookline.  He was an actor and theatrical producer, credited with founding the Cambridge Arts Festival and the Metropolitan Arts Center.  In 1971, he was appointed by President John F. Kennedy to be a member of the President’s Advisory Committee on the Arts.

On August 21, 2000, 142 Marlborough was purchased from William Morris Hunt by Maria L. Pizzuto, trustee of the 142 Marlborough Street Realty Trust.

On August 29, 2000, 142 Marlborough was acquired from Maria Pizzuto by Larry Post and his wife, Valerie (Ben) Post. On September 7, 2000, they transferred the property into his name.

In December of 2000, Larry Post applied for (and subsequently received) permission to reduce the number of units from ten to five.

As part of the remodeling, the street level entrance created in 1940 was removed and the front entrance restored to its original design.  The remodeling was designed by architect Richard F. Bernstein.

On August 15, 2019, Larry Post transferred the property to himself and Valerie Post as trustees of the 142 Marlborough Street Realty Trust.

142 Marlborough continued to be assessed as a four- to six-family dwelling in 2021.