We are pleased to present
a guest blog written by
Nancy Kueny, an associate at Gibson Sotheby’s International
Realty in Charlestown, Massachusetts. The article originally
appeared in the Charlestown Patriot-Bridge on October 7,
2021.
43-45 Park Street, Charlestown, Massachusetts as it stands
today.
In the 1970s and 80s, a
number of buildings located on Warren Street and Main Street as one
approached the City Square area were in derelict condition and many
had been razed or were slated to be razed by the Boston
Redevelopment Authority. One such abandoned building was 44-46
Warren Street. At the time, Jim Adams, the developer responsible
for the rejuvenation of the Thompson Triangle, owned the building
but decided he was not interested in restoring this one. Initially
he wanted to tear this double house down. Instead, he sold it to
Allan Kueny (aka my husband) and our partner Tom Howley who planned
to move the house to a new location just around the corner on Park
Street and authentically restore it. Jim at the time was occupied
with the Tontine Cresent project on Main Street.
44-46 Park Street was
most likely constructed around 1830-1840. It was comprised of two
attached Greek Revival side hall plan homes with two stories and a
gabled roof, a very common style in Charlestown. By the 1980s it
was a ramshackle structure with no remaining paint, no windows, and
an entry covered with plywood that for quite some time featured the
enigmatic graffiti ‘Jeffrey Hennesey Has His
Priorities’. An 1875 plan of Ward 20 in Boston indicates that
44-46 Warren Street was owned by S.S. Wilson. It also indicates
that there was a livery stable to the right at the corner of Henley
and Warren, which interestingly must have preceded the garage at 40
Warren Street. Same function but different mode of
transportation.
Houses have been moved
since the 1700s for various reasons. The process is quite simple
and moving a building today is technically similar to the way
buildings were moved in earlier centuries. The difference is that
today the house rolls down the street on a flatbed truck instead of
being pulled along by a team of oxen or horses.
The first step in
moving a structure is to place temporary I-beams under the first
floor. This is done by punching holes in the foundation to insert
the steel beams. The foundation is left behind. The beams take the
place of the foundation in terms of supporting the structure. Next,
wooden cribbing beams are incrementally and meticulously installed
beneath the I-beams as hydraulic house jacks systematically raise
the building. Once the building is even with the flatbed it is
hydraulically moved onto the truck. Once on the truck the house is
carefully moved, generally at a walking pace.
It was quite a sight
seeing this building head down Warren Street toward its new
location. A large crowd of spectators assembled as it was such a
novel event. The move was done by Gordon Building Movers of Hingham
who have been moving buildings since 1895. This building was moved
in the late 1980s. At that time, the patriarch of the family Don
Gordon was in charge. He was fascinating to watch. It’s not
every day you see a man directing and cajoling his crew and a Greek
Revival building down a city street. The move was seamless. These
guys know what they are doing. A number of years later, around
2000, Gordon Building Movers moved a late Georgian (1827) two story
center entrance home for us from 81 School Street to 2 Putnam
Street, again doing a spectacular job. We subsequently
authentically restored this building as well.
Once the house arrived
at the new site at 43-45 Park Street, it needed to be matched to a
new foundation which at that point was partially constructed. The
foundation was then built around the steel beams which were removed
and the foundation holes filled.
The two homes were
ready for restoration. The building had been stripped down to the
sheathing and any remaining trim removed prior to the move. It was
basically a shell, but the post and beam structure was completely
intact and in good condition. Allan was able to keep the original
pine flooring, the original bannisters and stairs and the original
front doors, but not much else remained. The brick fireplace stacks
and chimneys had survived the move and were restored and lined.
Reproduction millwork and windows were installed inside and out,
and appropriate antique interior doors were sourced for the right
side. The entire building was rewired, plumbed, roofed, clapboarded
and brought up to code. The homes are a great addition to the
existing row of early 19th century restored frame homes along
Common Street and Park Street. The first owner of 43 Park on the
downhill side subsequently added a one-story addition with a third
chimney that enhanced the mass of the building as a whole. The
current owners of both homes have added shutters and it is now a
lovely shade of blue. Allan and Tom were given Preservation Awards
by the Charlestown Preservation Society for this project. I
don’t think it’s in the cards for us to move a third
house, but it certainly was one of the most interesting and
gratifying things that we have ever done.
Please contact Nancy at
617.697.9819 or Nancy.Kueny@GibsonSIR.com. To
learn more about her, click
here.
