The north side of Newbury between Hereford and Massachusetts Avenue developed slowly between 1882 and the 1890s, with the lots at 341-343-345 Newbury remaining vacant until even later.

The summaries below discuss the early ownership and subdivision of the land, and then trace the evolution of the individual buildings from when they were built until they were first converted into commercial uses. The summaries also include information on some of the coachmen (and later chauffeurs) who lived above the stables with their families. In addition to being the homes of the coachmen, most stables also served as dwellings for the hostlers, grooms, and stablemen who worked in the stables.

Included are entries on the following buildings:

• 45-53 Hereford (1882)
• 321 Newbury (2019)
• 325-327 Newbury (1898-1899)
• 329 Newbury (1898)
• 331 Newbury (1884)
• 333 Newbury (1882)
• 335 Newbury (1899)
• 337 Newbury (1882)
• 339 Newbury (1888)
• 341 Newbury (341-343 Newbury) (1907)
• 343 Newbury (345-347 Newbury) (1928)
• 347 Newbury (1881) (Demolished)
• 349 Newbury (1881)
• 351 Newbury (1881)
• 353 Newbury (1881)
• 355 Newbury (1881)
• 359-363 Newbury  / 92-100 Massachusetts Avenue (1892)

Land Ownership and Subdivision

The land on the north side of Newbury between Hereford and Massachusetts Avenue (formerly West Chester Park) originally was owned by the David Sears family and the Boston Water Power Company. It was part of the area extending from the south side of Commonwealth to the north side of Newbury, with no alley in between. When they sold the land, the deeds contained none of the usual restrictions requiring that buildings be set back a specified distance from the sidewalk and prohibiting the use of the land for stables (other than private stables).

By January of 1872, the former Boston Water and Power Company lands in the western and central portions of the block were owned by lumber dealer David Nelson Skillings as trustee of a real estate investment trust, and the former Sears family lands were owned by real estate investor and dealer Nathan Matthews. Nathan Matthews’s holdings subsequently were acquired by John Worster and by Caleb H. Warner and Charles F. Smith.

The boundary between the Boston Water Power Company land and the Sears family land originally had run at approximately a 45 degree angle. In December of 1878, the owners entered into a series of transactions and agreements “squaring up” the north-south boundaries to run parallel with Hereford and creating a sixteen foot wide alley (now Alley 430) equivalent to the alleys on the blocks further east.

Click here for more information about the land between the north side of Newbury and the south side of Commonwealth Avenue, between Hereford and Massachusetts Avenue

As part of their agreements in December of 1878, the land owners established a twenty foot set back requirement for homes on Commonwealth, the same as the set back required further east on Commonwealth. No set back requirement was included for the lots on Newbury (unlike the blocks further east, where a 22 foot set back was required) and no limitation was imposed on the use of the land for stables.

As the lots were sold on Commonwealth and on Newbury, language was inserted in the deeds for lots towards the eastern end of the block limiting the construction of stables. No language was added, however, to require that the buildings on Newbury be set back from the property line and, as a result, all of the buildings on the north side of the street were built to the sidewalk, with no front yard areas.

45-53 Hereford

Caleb H. Warner and Charles F. Smith were the owners of the land at the eastern end of the block between Commonwealth and Newbury, extending west from Hereford 90 feet 3 inches. They subdivided the land into parcels on Commonwealth and on Newbury, and, when they sold the land on Commonwealth, they included language specifying that only dwelling houses would be built on their land on Newbury, and that any dwelling house built on land between Hereford and a line 60 feet west of Hereford would face Hereford, not Newbury.

45-47-49-51-53 Hereford were built in 1882 on that land, facing Hereford as required by the land deeds. The southern façade of 53 Hereford, facing Newbury, was built without windows, presumably because they would look out on the large stable across the street, at 320 Newbury.

The lots for these houses originally were 67 feet deep (east-west) and the lot immediately to the west, with a 23 foot 3 inch frontage, remained vacant; it also was subject to the restriction specifying that only dwelling houses could be built on the land. In April of 1886, the owners of the five houses on Hereford purchased the neighboring lot, thereby extending their property depth to 90 feet 3 inches, the full length of the land previously owned by Caleb Warner and Charles F. Smith.

Click here for more information on 45 Hereford, 47 Hereford, 49 Hereford, 51 Hereford, and 53 Hereford.

321 Newbury

In December of 2017, the owners of 45-53 Hereford received permission to construct a new commercial building in the former rear yards of the five buildings, with an entrance at 321 Newbury and a wing to the east connecting with 49-53 Hereford. As part of the project, 53 Hereford also was remodeled to remove an existing penthouse structure, and install an entrance and windows on the Newbury façade.

325-339 Newbury Land

The land to the west of Caleb Warner’s and Charles F. Smith’s land was owned by John Worster. It extended 168.88 feet, comprising the land from where 325 Newbury would be built to about 5 feet beyond where 337 Newbury would be built.

On April 24, 1880, John Worster conveyed his land to Edwin Tufts. In the deed, he included a provision that, for ten years “no stable shall be placed or maintained upon any part of the premises lying east of a line parallel with the westerly line of Gloucester street and distant therefrom 610.66 feet without the consent of the owner for the time being of the lot on Commonwealth Avenue being immediately north of the lot on which it is proposed to build such stable.” This restriction affected a parcel extending 85 feet 5 inches west from Warner and Smith’s land, the lots where 325-327-329 Newbury and about 18 feet of 331 Newbury later would be built. The land was across the alley from the western half of the lot at 320 Commonwealth, all of 322-324 Commonwealth, and part of 326 Commonwealth.

On April 28, 1880, Edwin Tufts conveyed the eastern 90 feet (comprising the land where 325-331 Newbury would be built) to Charles Hammond Gibson of 137 Beacon, and the western 72.88 feet (comprising land where 333-337 Newbury and about 5 feet of 339 Newbury would be built) to real estate dealer George Wheatland, Jr.

One year later, in April of 1881, Charles Gibson sold his land to real estate dealer Henry Whitwell. He was unmarried and lived at 111 Commonwealth with his two unmarried siblings, Samuel Horatio Whitwell, who also was his business partner, and Sophia Louisa Whitwell. Henry Whitwell died in December of 1887, and his holdings were inherited by Sophia Whitwell and Samuel H. Whitwell, and their married brother, Frederick Augustus Whitwell, who lived at 113 Marlborough.

The parcel owned by the Whitwells was subject to the ten year deed restriction preventing construction of stables without the consent of the owner of the land across the alley on Commonwealth. In 1883, the Whitwells acquired 326 Commonwealth, across from 331 Newbury, expunged the restriction, and then sold it again, permitting Henry Whitwell to build a stable at 331 Newbury. After the restriction expired in April of 1890, the Whitwells were unsuccessful in their efforts to build a commercial stable on the remainder of their land, and ultimately 325-327-329 Newbury were built as private stables in the late 1890s.

The parcel owned by George Wheatland, Jr., west of 331 Newbury was not subject to restrictions preventing the construction of stables. On April 28, 1880, the same day he acquired the land, he sold the lot at 333 Newbury and a private stable was constructed soon thereafter. In December of 1880, he transferred the remainder to his father, George Wheatland, Sr., of Salem, who sold the land at 337 Newbury and the western five feet at 339 Newbury in September of 1881. A private stable was built at 337 Newbury in 1881-1882. In November of 1881, he transferred the remaining lot at 335 Newbury back to his son; it remained vacant until 1889.

325-327 Newbury

325-327 Newbury were built in 1898-1899 as two-story plus basement brick stables and dwellings, each on a 22.5 foot lot. They were operated as one private stable after completion of 325 Newbury in 1899 and subsequently combined.

The land at 325-327 Newbury was purchased by Henry Whitwell in April of 1881 and inherited by his siblings – Frederick, Sophia, and Samuel H. Whitwell – after his death in December of 1887.

In November of 1895, Ralph Huntington White, founder and president of the R. H. White department store, filed an application with the Board of Health to build a 50-horse, five-story brick stable at 325-327-329 Newbury to be used for his firm’s delivery vehicles. Under the plan, he would purchase the land from the Whitwell family and also purchase 324 Commonwealth, owned by Samuel Whitwell and leased to the Gilman School. The proposal was strongly opposed by the residents on Commonwealth and the permit was denied.

In December of 1896, Samuel Whitwell filed an application with the Board of Health to construct a “club stable” (a large private stable where members could maintain stalls for their horses and storage space for their carriages) on the same property. That application also was strongly opposed and was denied.

Having failed to win approval for a large commercial stable, in 1898 Samuel Whitwell built a private stable at 327 Newbury. Alonzo S. Drisko, carpenter, is shown as the builder on the September 8, 1898, permit application; no architect is identified.

In April of 1899, Samuel Whitwell sold the land at 325 Newbury to Alice (Haskell) Burrage, the wife of Albert Cameron Burrage. The Burrages were in the process of building a new home across the alley at 314 Commonwealth. He was an attorney and former president of several local gas lighting companies, and an investor in copper mining and chemical companies.

In August of 1899, Samuel Whitwell sold 327 Newbury to the Burrages, and in September of 1899, they applied to the Board of Health for a permit to construct a stable at 325 Newbury. The Boston Globe’s September 21, 1899, report on the filing indicated that Albert Burrage would operate the new stable along with 327 Newbury and “the two will give him accommodation for 18 horses.” The application was unopposed and the stable constructed. The two stables subsequently were combined into one building.

By 1901, 325-327 Newbury was the home of the Burrages’ coachman, William Mitchell Rae, and his wife, Dorothy (Nicholson) Rae.

William Rae’s younger brother, Arthur Burrell Rae, also lived at 325-327 Newbury and worked in the stable, first as a hostler and then, in 1904-1905, as a coachman. He subsequently moved and worked for about a year as coachman to George Alexander Philips Duncan of 8 Gloucester. Arthur Rae married in December of 1907 to Ingred Nelson, and by 1908 they were living at 331 Newbury and he was coachman to William L. McKee and his wife, Bessie (Pardee) van Wickle McKee of 284 Commonwealth.

By 1908, the Burrages probably had converted the building into a garage; William Rae was listed as a chauffeur in the 1909 and later City Directory. The Raes continued to live at 325-327 Newbury and he continued as the Burrages’ chauffeur until about 1922.

In July of 1922, the Burrages sold 325-327 Newbury to Anna C. Kelley, who was employed by the Cyrus Carpenter & Company, dealers in kitchen ranges and appliances and purchased the building on their behalf. The company remodeled 325-327 Newbury and converted it into their offices and showroom.

329 Newbury

329 Newbury, a two-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a 22.5 foot frontage, was built in 1898-1899 for real estate dealer Samuel Horatio Whitwell of 111 Commonwealth. Alonzo S. Drisko, carpenter, is shown as the builder on the building permit applkication, dated June 13, 1898; no architect is identified.

Samuel Whitwell and his siblings, Frederick Augustus Whitwell and Sophia Louisa Whitwell, had inherited the land for 329 Newbury from their brother, Henry Whitwell, who died in December of 1887.

The Whitwells had also owned the stable next door, at 331 Newbury, which Henry Whitwell had built in 1883-1884, and which they sold in May of 1898 about the same time they began building the stable at 329 Newbury. The next year, Samuel Whitwell built a stable at 335 Beacon and, about the same time, another stable across the street at 332 Newbury. Soon after completing those stables, he sold 329 Newbury and 332 Newbury, and kept 335 Newbury, presumably for his own use or to lease it to others.

By 1900, 329 Newbury was the home of Wilfred A. Casemore, a coachman. He appears to have been coachman for George Augustus Nickerson of 303 Commonwealth, who may have been leasing the stable from Samuel Whitwell. Wilfred Casemore continued to live there in 1901, but moved thereafter.

Samuel Whitwell sold 329 Newbury in March of 1901, to Supreme Judicial Court Justice William Caleb Loring. He and his wife, Susan (Lawrence) Loring, lived at 404 Beacon.

From about 1902 to 1904, 329 Newbury was the home of the Lorings’ coachman, Elmer Johnson. and in about 1906 and 1907 it was the home of their coachman, John Dodd.

In April of 1917, William Loring transferred 329 Newbury to his wife.

Susan Loring died in March of 1923, and 329 Newbury was acquired in September of 1923 by Howard C. Davis.

In 1925, the property was converted into a laundry, an annex to the Priscilla Laundry Company at 331 Newbury.

331 Newbury

331 Newbury, a two-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a 22.5 foot frontage, was built in 1883-1884 for real estate dealer Henry Whitwell of 111 Commonwealth. Joseph M. Keening, mason, is shown as the builder on the permit application, dated November 20, 1883; no architect is indicated.

The land at 331 Newbury was part of the larger parcel that Henry Whitwell acquired in April of 1881. About 18 feet of the eastern portion of the land was subject to the deed restriction preventing construction of stables without the consent of the owner of the land across the alley on Commonwealth. However, in October of 1883, Samuel Whitwell purchased 326 Commonwealth, across the alley, entered into an agreement with his brother to waive the restriction, and then sold 326 Commonwealth in December of 1883. Having expunged the limitation, Henry Whitwell could build a stable at 331 Newbury.

Henry Whitwell died in December of 1887 and 331 Newbury was inherited by his three siblings: Frederick A. Whitwell, Sophia L. Whitwell, and Samuel H. Whitwell.

It appears that the Whitwells leased 331 Newbury to Albion Bryant Turner, whose coachman, John O’Brien, lived there from about 1887. He was among the coachmen mentioned (with a drawn portrait) in a February 17, 1889, Boston Herald feature article on the “Men Who Drive for Boston’s First Families.” Albion Turner was a developer of water works systems and later would become a banker and broker. He and his wife, Alice (Rawson) Turner, lived at 253 Commonwealth.

John O’Brien continued to live at 331 Newbury until about 1889, after which he became John F. Andrew’s coachman and moved to 339 Newbury. In April of 1890 he married Ellen (Nellie) Kelley.

In May of 1898, the Whitwells sold 331 Newbury to real estate dealer Lewis H. Browne of 384 Commonwealth. The next month, Samuel Whitwell filed for approval of a new stable next door, at 329 Newbury.

In 1900 and 1901, 331 Newbury was the home of coachman Peter Fraser McKay and his wife, Caroline A. (MacPherson) McKay.

Lewis Browne sold 331 Newbury in December of 1901 to Miss Emily Esther Sears of 420 Beacon. She died in December of 1902 and 331 Newbury was inherited by her brothers, Henry Francis Sears and David Sears. Henry Sears and his wife, Jean Irvine (Struthers) Sears, lived at 420 Beacon. David Sears was unmarried and made his primary residence in Paris.

From about 1905 through 1907, 331 Newbury was the home of the Searses’ coachman, Jeremiah O’Donoghue, and his wife, Margaret (Coughlin) O’Donoghue.

In May of 1907, 331 Newbury was purchased from Henry and David Sears by the estate of Arthur Hunnewell.

331 Newbury was leased from Arthur Hunnewell’s estate by wholesale shoe and boot merchant William Leander McKee and his wife, Bessie (Pardee) van Wickle McKee, who lived at 284 Commonwealth and Bristol, Rhode Island. Bessie McKee purchased the property from the Hunnewell estate in October of 1909.

By 1908, 331 Newbury was the home of the McKees’ coachman, Arthur Burrell Rae, and his wife, Ingred (Nelson) Rae. Prior to their marriage in December of 1907, he had lived at 325 Newbury with his older brother, William Mitchell Rae, and his wife, Dorothy (Nicholson) Rae. William Rae was coachman for Albert C. Burrage, and Arthur Rae had been a hostler and then also served as a coachman for the Burrages. In about 1906, he had been coachman for George Alexander Philips Duncan of 8 Gloucester.

By about 1915, the McKees had converted 331 Newbury into a garage and Arthur Rae had become their chauffeur. He and his wife continued to live there until about 1920.

In July of 1920, Bessie McKee sold 331 Newbury to the Liberty Hand Laundry Company, which subsequently converted the building into a laundry. By 1925, it had become the Priscilla Laundry Company and had expanded into 329 Newbury.

333 Newbury

333 Newbury, a two-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a 22 foot frontage, was built in 1881-1882 for retail clothier Charles Wallingford Parker, who purchased the land from George Wheatland, Jr., in April of 1880. Charles Parker and his wife, Mary Jane (Schoff) Parker, lived at 33 Worcester Square and were about to build a new home at 228 Commonwealth.

By 1883, 333 Newbury was the home of the Parkers’ coachman, Michael G. Gavin, and his wife, Mary T. (Welch) Gavin. They continued to live there in 1900, but moved thereafter.

In September of 1901, Charles Parker sold 333 Newbury to Miss Fanny Peabody Mason of 211 Commonwealth.

333 Newbury became the home of Fanny Mason’s coachman, Patrick B. Finnegan, and his wife, Mary E. (Cunningham) Finnegan. They continued to live there until his death in April of 1920.

In September of 1922, 333 Newbury was purchased from Fanny Mason by William Tufts and George Tufts, manufacturers of and dealers in storage batteries. They previously had been located at 336 Newbury.

335 Newbury

335 Newbury, a two-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a 23.88 foot frontage, was built in 1899 for real estate dealer Samuel H. Whitwell of 111 Commonwealth.

335 Newbury was the last private stable built on the north side of the block. The land for 335 Newbury previously had been owned by Nathaniel Thayer of 239 Commonwealth, who had purchased it in October of 1882 from George Wheatland, Jr., but left it vacant. Samuel Whitwell purchased the lot from Nathaniel Thayer in May of 1899.

At about the same time as Samuel Whitwell built 335 Newbury, he also built a stable across the street, at 332 Newbury, which was the last stable built on the south side of the block. He also owned a stable at 329 Newbury, which he had built in 1898-1899. He sold 329 Newbury in1901 and 332 Newbury in 1902, and kept 335 Newbury, either for his own use or to lease to others.

By 1901, it was the home of coachman Thomas J. Devine. He continued to live there until about 1906.

Samuel Whitwell died in March of 1904 and 335 Newbury was purchased from his estate in February of 1906 by Cornelia (Andrew) Clark, the wife of John Dudley Clark, of 32 Hereford. She was Nathaniel Thayer’s niece.

335 Newbury became the home of the Clarks’ coachman, Alexander Patterson, who continued to live there until about 1911. From 1912 until about 1916 it was the home of their coachman, Robert Spiers.

In July of 1916, the Clarks sold 335 Newbury to Miss Eleanora (Eleo) Randolph Sears of 122 Beacon, a noted athlete. On January 15, 1917, the Boston Globe reported that she had “secured a permit for the biggest private garage in the city,” converting 335 Newbury into a garage for four cars with the dimensions ”about 100 feet long and 30 feet wide …larger than many of the public garages of the city.” The width cited in the article would have been six feet wider than the lot at 335 Newbury, implying that she intended to acquire a neighboring building as well.

Miss Sears apparently abandoned her plans and by mid-1919, she had leased the building to the Marvel Carburetor Sales Company. She continued to own the property until February of 1945, when she sold it to Carroll R. Swaney.

337 Newbury

337 Newbury, a five-horse, two-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a 22 foot frontage, was built in 1881-1882 for leather and shoe dealer Henry Lefrelet Daggett, who purchased the land in September of 1881 from George Wheatland, Sr. The original building permit, dated October 15, 1881, indicates that it was designed by Snell and Gregerson and built by Webster & Dixon, masons.

Henry Daggett and his wife, Sara (Williams) Daggett, lived at 116 Commonwealth. He died in March of 1882, probably before 337 Newbury was completed. 337 Newbury was inherited by his wife and their three surviving children: Henry Lefrelet Daggett, Jr., Sara Whittemore Daggett, and Eleanor Williams Daggett.

By 1882, 337 Newbury was the home of the Daggetts’ coachman, William John Selby, and his wife, Matilda (Johnston) Selby. They continued to live there until about 1891. By 1892, he had become coachman for wool dealer Nehemiah Webster Rice and they had moved to 349 Newbury.

By 1893, 337 Newbury was the home of the Daggetts’ new coachman, Patrick O’Brien. He continued to live there until about 1897.

Henry L. Daggett, Jr., died in December of 1895, and Sara (Williams) Daggett died in March of 1900. 337 Newbury continued to be owned by Sara W. Daggett, Eleanor Daggett, and their nephew, Henry L. Daggett, III, who inherited his father’s one-third interest.

In 1901 and 1902, the Daggett family’s coachman was Michael Alfred Yates, and he and his wife, Sarah (Barrett) Yates, lived at 337 Newbury. He previously had been coachman for John A. Burnham (who died in March of 1899) and they had lived at 356 Newbury. Alfred Yates was among the coachmen mentioned in a February 17, 1889, Boston Herald feature article on the “Men Who Drive for Boston’s First Families.”

By 1903, John Gaddy had become the Daggetts’ coachman and he and his wife, Annette M. (Nelson) Gaddy, lived at 337 Newbury.

Sara Daggett and Eleanor Daggett had continued to live at 116 Commonwealth until about 1902. By the 1902-1903 season, Eleanor Daggett had moved to an apartment at the Hotel Royal at 295 Beacon. Sara Daggett traveled abroad and by the 1903-1904 season was living at the Hotel Somerset. In June of 1904, she married Dr. Robert Fowler Beattie. After their marriage, they lived in Brookline, where he maintained his medical practice. They also had a home on Phillips Beach in Swampscott, where Dr. Beattie drowned while swimming in August of 1905.

By about 1908, the Daggetts ceased using 337 Newbury as a stable. John Gaddy became their chauffeur, and they offered the stable for lease. The Gaddys continued to live there until about 1910.

The Daggetts subsequently leased the property to Charles S. Russell, a car dealer, and to the Newbury Auto Company, which operated it as a driving and auto repair school.

In June of 1912, Henry L. Daggett, III, sold his one-third interest in the property to his aunts. Sara (Daggett) Beattie died in April of 1918, and her share was inherited by Eleanor Daggett, who remained unmarried. In September of 1923, she filed for permission to cut doors in the party wall between her building and 339 Newbury. The work does not appear to have been done.

Eleanor Daggett continued to own 337 Newbury until 1929, when she sold the property to real estate dealer Henry C. Brooklings.

339 Newbury

339 Newbury, a two-story plus basement brick and brownstone stable and dwelling with a 22.34 foot frontage, was built in 1888 for attorney and US Congressman John Forrester Andrew. He and his wife, Harriet Bayard (Thayer) Andrew, lived at 32 Hereford.

John F. Andrew purchased the western 17.34 feet of the land for 339 Newbury in January of 1881 from the estate of David N. Skillings, and the eastern 5 feet in September of 1881 from George Wheatland, Sr. The original building permit for 339 Newbury, dated April 21, 1888, indicates that it was designed by Longfellow, Alden and Harlow, and was built by Rutan & Fraser (William L. Rutan and John Fraser), contractors and builders.

By about 1889, 339 Newbury was the home of the Andrews’ coachman, Joseph H. Nash, and his wife, Annie (Toms) Nash. He was among the coachmen mentioned (with a drawn portrait) in a February 17, 1889, Boston Herald feature article on the “Men Who Drive for Boston’s First Families.”

By the next year, 339 Newbury was the home of coachman John O’Brien. He previously had been coachman for Albion B. Turner and had lived at 331 Newbury. In April of 1890 he married Ellen (Nellie) Kelley. They lived at 339 Newbury until about 1895. In April of 1898, John O’Brien purchased a home at 16 St. Germain. By 1900, he became coachman for Ralph Blake Williams of 304 Commonwealth. John and Ellen O’Brien continued to live at 16 St. Germain until about 1901. In January of 1901, Ralph Williams purchased the stable at 356 Newbury and the O’Briens moved there to live.

Harriet Andrew died in September of 1891 and John F. Andrew died in May of 1895. 339 Newbury was inherited by their two minor daughters, Cornelia Thayer Andrew and Elizabeth Thayer Andrew.

In November of 1895, 339 Newbury was sold by their uncle and guardian, Nathaniel Thayer, to Ann (Preston) Groves, wife of William Groves, of 207 St. Botolph. It appears likely that she acquired the property on behalf of Edward P. Shaw, to whom she conveyed the property in June of 1897. Edward Shaw was a contractor and investor in street railway systems. He and his wife, Annie Payson (Trott) Shaw, lived in Newburyport. In April of 1895, he was named Massachusetts State Treasurer by the State Legislature (replacing Henry M. Phillips, who had resigned) and served until 1899. While he was Treasurer, he and his wife lived at 471 Commonwealth and in Newburyport; by 1900 he had moved to Brookline.

By 1896, 339 Newbury was the home of Edward Shaw’s coachman, Charles O’Brien, and his wife, Mary. They continued to live there in 1897. By 1900, they were living in Brookline at Edward Shaw’s estate.

in June of 1899 Edward Shaw sold 339 Newbury to Mary Gardner (Adams) Quincy, the widow of Dr. Henry Parker Quincy. She lived at 452 Beacon and in Dedham.

By1900, 339 Newbury was the home of Mary Quincy’s coachman, Benjamin C. Stantial, and his wife, Caroline Clark (Eaton) Stantial. Caroline Stantial died in November of 1914. Mary Quincy continued to maintain 339 Newbury as a stable until 1920, and it continued to be Benjamin Stantial’s residence at the time of the 1920 US Census.

In May of 1919, Mary Quincy transferred both 452 Beacon and 339 Newbury to her nephew, Charles Francis Adams, II, and Robert Homans, the husband of her niece, Abigail (Adams) Homans, as trustees for her daughters, Dorothy (Quincy) Nourse, the wife of Frederick Russell Nourse, Jr., and Elinor Adams Quincy. Elinor Quincy married in October of 1920 to Claude DeWitt Simpson and Mary Quincy subsequently made her home in Dedham her year round residence. Benjamin Staintial also lived in Dedham after that time.

Charles Francis Adams, as trustee, leased 339 Newbury to Y-D Service Garages, Inc., which had purchased 341 Newbury in September of 1919 and operated a garage and service station in the building. Doors were cut in the party wall between the two buildings, and 339 Newbury became a tire and automotive accessory store operated by Y-D Service Garages.

By 1923, architect and builder Lawrence S. Joslin (who had designed the remodeling of 339 Newbury) also maintained his office in the building.

In September of 1923, Eleanor Daggett, owner of 337 Newbury, filed for permission to cut doors in the party wall between her building and 339 Newbury, with the Joslin Company as the builder. The work does not appear to have been done.

In December of 1925, Y-D Service Garages, Inc., purchased 339 Newbury from the trust established by Mary Quincy. In September of 1940, Frederic R. Nourse, Jr., and Dorothy Q. N. Beckwith, holders of a mortgage give by Y-D Service Garages when it purchased the building, foreclosed and took possession of the property.

341-355 Newbury Land

The land where 341-355 Newbury would be built was purchased through several transactions in December of 1880 by Henry Lee Higginson, an investment banker in the firm of Lee, Higginson & Co. He and his wife, Ida (Agassiz) Higginson, lived at 191 Commonwealth, the Hotel Agassiz, which he had built with his brother-in-law, Alexander Agassiz, and his father, George Higginson.

Henry Higginson subdivided the parcel into eight lots and sold all but 355 Newbury by June of 1881. Two of the purchasers were partners in Lee, Higginson & Co., and the others probably were clients of the firm, and it appears likely that he acquired the parcel with the prior agreement of the buyers that they would each purchase a lot. He retained the lot at 355 Newbury, where he built a stable and then sold it in 1883.

The lots at 341-343-345 Newbury remained vacant and changed hands; a stable was built at 347 Beacon in 1881. In 1906, the White Sewing Machine Company built a six story garage at 341-343 Newbury, with a combined frontage of 62.6 feet. In 1925, Y-D Service Garages, Inc., purchased the still-vacant lot at 345 Newbury and the stable at 347 Newbury, demolished the stable, and built a three story garage on the lots with a frontage of 55 feet. In 2007, the street numbers of two garage buildings were changed to be 341 Newbury and 343 Newbury.

The owners of the four lots to the east, at 349-351-353-355 Newbury, each built a three-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling, 349 Newbury with 30 foot frontage and the others with 32 foot frontages. The stables were built at the same time in 1881 and in the same design.

341-343 Newbury

341 Newbury was designed by architect Clinton J. Warren and built in 1906-1907 as a six-story automobile garage with a 62.6 foot frontage for the White Sewing Machine Company. The company purchased the land for the building in October of 1905 from Thomas E. Dow, a lawyer, who had acquired it in October of 1902. It originally had been two lots: a 27.6 foot wide lot at 341 Newbury and a 35 foot wide lot at 343 Newbury. Both had remained vacant since they were subdivided as part of a larger parcel assembled by investment banker Henry Lee Higginson in 1881.

In January of 1905, the White Company had purchased the Riedell Stables at 320 Newbury and converted it into a salesroom, office, repair, and garage facility for the sale of its White steam-powered automobiles. On October 20, 1906, the Boston Evening Transcript reported that the land at 341-343 Newbury would be used “exclusively for garage purposes.”

In November of 1906, the White Sewing Machine Company filed a permit application for the new garage. Residents on Commonwealth protested the project because of concerns that flammable oil and gasoline would be stored in the building. The building was approved, however, and the garage opened in September of 1907. The White Company continued to own the building until September of 1919, when it was purchased by Y-D Service Garages, Inc., which continued to operate it as a garage.

In 1920, Y-D Service Garages Inc. leased 339 Newbury from a trust established by Mary (Adams) Quincy for the benefit of her daughters. Doors were cut in the party wall to connect the two buildings, and it became a tire and automotive accessory store operated by Y-D Service Garages. In December of 1925, Y-D Service Garages purchased 339 Newbury from the trust.

343 Newbury (345-347 Newbury) was designed by architect Lawrence S. Joslin and built in 1925 as a three-story plus basement garage with a 55 foot frontage for Y-D Service Garages, Inc. The company purchased the land for the building March of 1925, a vacant lot at 345 Newbury with a 25 foot frontage and a former stable at 347 Newbury with a 30 foot frontage, which it demolished. The May 21, 1925, permit application specified that the new building would include “provisions made for adding three more stories later.” The additional stories were never built.

341-343 Newbury. Y-D Service Garages continued to operate garages at 341-343 Newbury and at 345-347 Newbury until the late 1930s. In August of 1940, the Suffolk Savings Bank for Seamen and Others foreclosed on the mortgages it held on the building and in November of 1940 the bank sold both properties to the Danker & Donohue Garage Corp.

In December of 2007, Danker & Donohue transferred the building at 345-347 Newbury to its subsidiary, 343 Management LLC. As part of that transaction, it changed the addresses of both properties, the six-story building at 341-343 Newbury becoming 341 Newbury, and the three-story building at 345-347 Newbury becoming 343 Newbury.

347 Newbury (Demolished)

347 Newbury, a two-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a 30 foot frontage, was designed by Sturgis and Brigham and built in 1881 by Weston & Shepard, masons, for investment banker Eben Rollins Morse. He is shown as the owner on the original permit application, dated July 7, 1881. Rollins Morse and his wife, Marion (Steedman) Morse, lived at 167 Commonwealth.

Rollins Morse purchased the land for 347 Newbury from Henry L. Higginson in June of 1881. His brother and business partner, Charles Jackson Morse, had purchased the lot at 345 Newbury two months earlier. The lot remained vacant until the mid-1920s, having changed owners several times.

By 1889, 347 Newbury was the home of Rollins Morse’s coachman, Edward Cahill. He was among the coachmen mentioned (with a drawn portrait) in a February 17, 1889, Boston Herald feature article on the “Men Who Drive for Boston’s First Families.”

In August of 1891, Rollins Morse sold 347 Newbury to sugar refiner Joseph Brown Thomas, Jr. He and his wife, Annie (Hill) Thomas, had purchased 19 Bay State Road earlier that year. They previously had lived at 92 Marlborough.

In 1892 and 1893, 347 Newbury was the home of coachman Frank Loving.

In March of 1894, Joseph Thomas sold 347 Newbury to Mary (Pratt) Sprague, wife of attorney Charles Franklin Sprague, of 163 Marlborough. Charles Sprague was a lawyer. He served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1891 and 1892, and as a member of the State Senate in 1895 and 1896. He was elected to Congress in November of 1896.

After his election to Congress, the Spragues moved to Washington DC and leased 347 Newbury to banker Herbert Mason Sears and his wife, Caroline (Bartlett) Sears. They lived at 287 Commonwealth. In April of 1897, Caroline Sears purchased 347 Newbury from Mary Sprague.

From about 1896, 347 Newbury was the home of the Searses’ coachman, Charles H. Torney, and his wife, Catherine Elizabeth (Fitzpatrick) Torney.

Caroline Sears died in 1908 and 347 Newbury was inherited by Herbert Sears. Charles Torney continued as the Sears family coachman and the Torneys continued to live there until about 1913.

In 1914, 347 Newbury was the home of the Sears family’s new coachman, John James McMullen, and his wife, Georgina (MacLennan) McMullen. He previously had been coachman for Henry Parsons King and they had lived at 350 Newbury. By 1917, John McMullen had become chauffeur for John S. Ames of 3 Commonwealth and North Easton, and by 1920 the McMullens were living at the Ameses’ garage at 344 Newbury.

By 1916, Herbert Sears had rented 347 Newbury to the Gould Storage Battery Company, which converted it into a storage battery testing, repairing, and recharging station.

In March of 1925, Y-D Service Garages, Inc., purchased 347 Newbury from Herbert Sears and the vacant lot at 345 Newbury from its current owner, Ellen (Ayer) Wood, wife of wool manufacturer William Madison Wood, of 21 Fairfield. The company demolished 347 Newbury and built a three-story plus basement garage on the two lots.

349 Newbury

349 Newbury, a three-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a frontage of 30 feet, was designed by Snell and Gregerson and built in 1881 by Webster & Dixon, masons, and Daniel J. Donovan, carpenter. It was one of a symmetrical group of four stables (349-351-353-355 Newbury) designed in the same style and built at the same time.

351 Newbury was built for iron and steel manufacturer George Parsons King on land he purchased from Henry Lee Higginson in April of 1881. George King is shown as the owner on the original building permit application, dated May 4, 1881. He and his wife, Sarah (Lothrop) King, lived at 21 Fairfield.

By 1883, 349 Newbury was the home of coachman Patrick Lally.

In October of 1884, 349 Newbury was purchased from George King by leather and wool dealer Nehemiah Webster Rice. He and his wife, Josephine (Emery) Rice, lived at 341 Commonwealth.

By 1887, it was the home of the Rices’ coachman Joseph A. Jones. He continued to live there until about 1891.

From about 1892, 349 Newbury was the home of coachman William John Selby and his wife, Matilda (Johnston) Selby. He previously had been coachman for the Daggett family and they had lived at 337 Newbury. Matilda Selby died in January of 1900. Their daughter, Mabel Emma Selby, married in December of 1902 to coachman John Edwin Burgess; from about 1905, he was coachman for Ellen B. (King) Kendall, the widow of Joseph S. Kendall, and they lived at 324 Newbury.

William Selby married again in March of 1906 to Mary R. (McLeod) Picken, a widow.

Nehemiah Rice died in December of 1911. William Selby continued as the Rice family’s coachman. His son-in-law, John Burgess, died in October of 1913, after which Mabel (Selby) Burgess and their children lived at 349 Newbury. They all continued to live there until about 1918.

In August of 1921, the Rice family sold 349 Newbury to the School of Fine Arts and Crafts, which remodeled the building and moved there later that year. On April 21, 1927, the building was seriously damaged by a fire and the school subsequently moved to 234 Beacon.

351 Newbury

351 Newbury, a three-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a frontage of 32 feet, was designed by Snell and Gregerson and built in 1881 by Webster & Dixon, masons, and Daniel J. Donovan, carpenter. It was one of a symmetrical group of four stables (349-351-353-355 Newbury) designed in the same style and built at the same time.

351 Newbury was built for investment banker Francis Lee Higginson on land he purchased in April of 1881 from his brother (and partner in Lee, Higginson & Co.), Henry Lee Higginson. Francis L. Higginson is shown as the owner on the original building permit application, dated May 4, 1881. He and his wife, Julia (Borland) Higginson, lived at 274 Beacon.

Francis L. Higginson sold 351 Newbury in September of 1888 to leather dealer and real estate investor Thomas Emerson Proctor. He and his wife, Emma (Howe) Proctor, lived at 327 Beacon and then 273 Commonwealth.

By 1890, 351 Newbury was the home of the Proctors’ coachman, John McGarry, and his wife, Bridget (Murray) McGarry.

Thomas Proctor died in December of 1894. The McGarrys moved from 351 Newbury to 11 Scotia soon thereafter, but he continued to be the Proctor family’s coachman until about 1900.

From about 1900, 351 Newbury was the home of the Proctors’ coachman, Patrick W. O’Brien, and his wife, Margaret (Donovan) O’Brien. They continued to live there until about 1904.

From about 1905 to 1907 it was the home of coachman Gaston (probably Gustav) Blomquist, and from about 1907 to 1910 it was the home of coachman John McKnight.

Emma Proctor died in January of 1910. In June of 1910, Thomas Proctor’s estate sold 351 Newbury to Ellen (Ayer) Wood, wife of wool manufacturer William Madison Wood, of 21 Fairfield. She also owned the vacant lot at 345 Beacon.

By 1911, 351 Newbury was the home of the Woods’ coachman, John W. McTigue (McTighe), and his wife, Margaret A, (Chisholm) McTigue. They continued to live there until about 1917. At about that time, the Woods appear to have converted 351 Newbury into a garage. By 1920, the McTigues had moved to Oxford Terrace; he was a chauffeur, probably for the Wood family.

William Wood died in February of 1926. Ellen Wood transferred 351 Newbury to the Fairfield Trust, with her son, Cornelius Ayer Wood, as trustee, and in 1930, he leased 351 Newbury to the Back Bay Auto School.

From about 1930 to 1933, 351 Newbury was leased to Robert Dickson, who lived there and operated Pinkham’s Back Bay Express Company from the building. It previously had been located at 330 Newbury, where he also had lived. He had moved from 351 Newbury by 1934 and it was shown as vacant in the Boston City Directory.

By 1935, it was the Stearns Service Company, an automobile repair shop. It previously had been located at 98 Massachusetts Avenue.

In June of 1936, Cornelius Wood sold 351 Newbury to the American Photographic Publishing Company. In August of that year, it purchased 353 Newbury for its offices and conveyed 351 Newbury to the Boston Camera Club. 351 Newbury remained the meeting rooms and gallery of the Boston Camera Club until 1980.

353 Newbury

353 Newbury, a three-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a frontage of 32 feet, was built in 1881, one of a symmetrical group of four stables (349-351-353-355 Newbury) designed in the same style and built at the same time. The permit applications for 353 Newbury and 355 Newbury have not yet been located, but it appears likely that they were designed by Snell and Gregerson and built by Webster & Dixon, masons, and Daniel J. Donovan, carpenter, who are shown as the architect and builders on the permit applications for 349-351 Newbury.

353 Newbury was built for investment banker Charles Fairchild on land he purchased in April of 1881 from Henry Lee Higginson, his partner in Lee, Higginson & Co. Charles Fairchild and his wife, Elizabeth (Nelson) Fairchild, lived (as did Henry L. Higginson) at the Hotel Agassiz at 191 Commonwealth.

Charles Fairchild sold 353 Newbury in March of 1882, soon after it had been completed, to investment banker Charles Jackson Morse of 153 Beacon. He had purchased the lot at 345 Beacon in June of 1881 and sold it in February of 1883, having left it vacant. In 1888, he retired from business and traveled to Europe, where he subsequently made his home in Pau, France.

Charles Morse sold 353 Newbury in April of 1887 to Delle (Sheldon) Potter, wife of banker Asa Perkins Potter, They lived at 29 Fairfield, at the southwest corner of Commonwealth and Fairfield, with a stable behind the house. In about 1890, the Potters began a major rebuilding of their home, including eliminating the stable, presumably replaced by the stable at 353 Newbury.

353 Newbury became the home of the Potters’ coachman, James McCullagh, and his wife, Mary J. (Davis) McCullagh. James McCullagh was among the coachmen mentioned in a February 17, 1889, Boston Herald feature article on the “Men Who Drive for Boston’s First Families.” The McCullaghs continued to live at 353 Newbury until about 1890.

Asa Potter was president of the Maverick National Bank. In October of 1891, the bank failed and he was indicted on various charges, including violating federal banking laws.

Delle Potter sold 353 Newbury in June of 1892 to banker and theatre owner John Stetson of 389 Beacon, who was building a new home at 461 Commonwealth. He died in April of 1896 and his wife, Katherine (Stokes) Stetson, died in May of 1896. After protracted litigation regarding John Stetson’s will, 353 Newbury and his other property were conveyed to Katherine Stetson’s mother, Emma (Sampson) Stokes, widow of Spencer Stokes, of New York City.

In May of 1902, Emma Stokes sold 353 Newbury to rubber manufacturer and mining company investor Robert Dawson Evans. He and his wife, Maria Antoinette (Hunt) Evans, lived at 17 Gloucester, joined by her mother, Antoinette (White) Hunt, the widow of David Hunt, and Maria Evans’s, sisters Abby W. Hunt and Belle Marinda Hunt.

By 1903, 353 Newbury was the home of the Evanses’ coachman, Henry H. Buckle, and his wife, Annie Susan (Burbidge) Buckle. He died in April of 1904 and she moved soon thereafter.

By 1905, 353 Newbury was the home of the Evanses’ new coachman, William Hillis. He was unmarried.

Robert Evans died in July of 1909. In about 1915, 353 Newbury was converted from a stable into a garage, and William Hillis continued as the family’s chauffeur.

Maria Antoinette Evans died in October of 1917. The Evanses had no children and their estate was inherited by her two unmarried sisters. William Hillis continued as the Hunt sisters’ chauffeur.

Abby Hunt died in December of 1933 and Belle Hunt died in January of 1936.

William Hillis inherited 353 Newbury and, in August of 1936, he sold the property to the American Photographic Publishing Company. It had purchased 351 Newbury in January of 1936 and, upon acquiring 353 Newbury, it transferred 351 Newbury to the Boston Camera Club and retained 353 Newbury as its offices. The American Photographic Publishing Company continued to own 353 Newbury until 1950.

In May of 1950, 353 Newbury was acquired by John S. Johnson, owner of 355 Newbury. He leased the building to the R. D. Row Music Company, music publishers.

355 Newbury

355 Newbury, a three-story plus basement brick stable and dwelling with a frontage of 32 feet, was built in 1881, one of a symmetrical group of four stables (349-351-353-355 Newbury) designed in the same style and built at the same time. The permit applications for 353 Newbury and 355 Newbury have not yet been located, but it appears likely that they were designed by Snell and Gregerson and built by Webster & Dixon, masons, and Daniel J. Donovan, carpenter, who are shown as the architect and builders on the permit applications for 349-351 Newbury.

355 Newbury was built for investment banker Henry Lee Higginson of Lee, Higginson & Co. on the furthest west of eight lots in a parcel he purchased in December of 1880. He sold the other seven lots during the first half of 1881.

Henry Higginson and his wife, Ida (Agassiz) Higginson, lived at 191 Commonwealth, the Hotel Agassiz, which he had built with his brother-in-law, Alexander Agassiz, and his father, George Higginson.

In May of 1883, soon after it was completed, Henry Higginson sold 355 Newbury to Nathaniel Thayer, Jr. He and his wife, Cornelia (Barroll) Thayer, lived at 70 Mt. Vernon and were building a new home at 22 Fairfield (239 Commonwealth). They also maintained homes in Lancaster and Newport. Cornelia Thayer died in February of 1885 and Nathaniel Thayer married again, in June of 1887 to Pauline Revere.

By 1884, 355 Newbury was the home of the Thayers’ coachman, William H. Bickford. He previously had lived at the Thayers’ stable at 7 Lime. He continued to live at 355 Newbury in 1885.

By 1887, 355 Newbury was the home of coachman Michael Carroll and his wife, Hannah (Stanton) Carroll. He was among the coachmen mentioned (with a drawn portrait) in a February 17, 1889, Boston Herald feature article on the “Men Who Drive for Boston’s First Families.” Their son, Thomas L. Carroll, lived with them and worked first as a hostler and then as a coachman for the Thayers. They continued to live there until about 1911.

Nathaniel Thayer died in March of 1911, Pauline (Revere) Thayer continued to own 355 Newbury and appears to have converted it into a garage by about 1916. It subsequently became the residence of her chauffeurs and other members of her staff. From about 1927 until 1934, it was the home of her butler, Cyril John Flegg, and his wife, Doris Henrietta (Fagerberg) Flegg.

Pauline Thayer died in September of 1934 and in January of 1936 her estate sold 355 Newbury to John Johnson Solberg (called John S. Johnson). He and his wife, Magna (Moen) Johnson, lived in Brookline. He converted the building into a paint store, J. S. Johnson & Sons.

In 1936 and 1937, the Johnsons also provided space for the Studio Club, a group of artists who met and displayed their work at 355 Newbury.

By 1938, the Studio Club was no longer located at 355 Newbury and the Johnsons had created a meeting space, called Newbury Hall, in the building, which became the regular meeting place for the Boston Sparks Association. Also in about 1938, the Johnsons’ son, Birger Johnson, operated the Old Norway Restaurant at 355 Newbury. The restaurant closed soon thereafter, but Newbury Hall continued to be listed in the city directories at 355 Newbury until the mid-1950s.

359-363 Newbury / 92-100 Massachusetts Avenue

359-363 Newbury / 92-100 Massachusetts Avenue, at the northeast corner of Newbury and Massachusetts Avenue, was built in 1892 as the Charlesgate Stables, a five-story plus basement brick livery stable with a 125 foot frontage on Newbury and a 124.5 foot frontage on Massachusets Avenue. It was designed by Peabody and Stearns, and built in 1892 by Alonzo S. Drisko, carpenter, and Charles A. Dodge, mason, for livery stable operators Charles Kenny (Kenney) and Eugene L. Clark. They are shown as the owners on the original permit application dated May 10, 1892.

Kenny & Clark leased the land for the Charlesgate Stables from Boston Real Estate Trust and the estate of Moses Williams, each of whom owned a one-half interest in property. Charles Kenny and his wife, Helen (Langmaid) Kenny, lived at 213 Beacon. Eugene Clark was unmarried and lived at 902 Beacon with his mother, Elizabeth R. (Perkins) Clark, widow of James R. Clark.

Prior to filing a building permit application, Kenny & Clark filed with the Boston Board of Health for a permit to operate a 200 horse commercial stable on the site. On April 1, 1892, the Board held hearings on the application. The owners of several nearby properties expressed their opposition, including, among others, Henry Lee (of Lee, Higginson & Co.), who owned the property on the northwest corner of Newbury and Massachusetts Avenue, and Nathan Matthews, Sr., who owned 362-366 Commonwealth, across the alley from the proposed stable.

Notwithstanding the opposition, the license was granted and the building permit subsequently approved.

Eugene Clark married in February of 1896 to Elnora Gleason. After their marriage, they lived with his mother at 902 Beacon.

Eugene Clark died in June of 1907 and Charles Kenny died in May of 1909.

In September of 1909, Benjamin Briscoe, Frank J. Tyler, and Lucius S. Tyler, trustees of the Maxwell-Briscoe Trust, purchased 359-363 Newbury / 92-100 Massachusetts Avenue). The trustees were manufacturers of the Maxwell automobile, and the Boston Globe’s September 18, 1909, article on the transaction indicated that “the company intends to have there one of the finest up-to-date garages in the city.”

The building subsequently became the new and used car sales room and service garage for the Maxwell-Briscoe Company, and also the location of various automobile dealers and automotive supply and service companies.

During the night of On August 10/11, 1910, the building was damaged by a three-alarm fire on the top story, where the Maxwell-Briscoe service garage was located. About 25 vehicles were destroyed, including a number owned by local residents. The Boston Globe’s August 11, 1910, report commented, however, that “one of the things for which the Maxwell-Briscoe Boston company was very grateful today was that the big automobile owned by Mayor John F. Fitzgerald, which was on the street floor on the Newbury-st side of the building, was run out and saved by one of the employees.” The article also noted that eleven new 1911 Maxwell-Briscoe touring cars were stored in the building’s cellar and “were not damaged to any great extent, except by water.”