Lucius Beebe Memorial Library, Wakefield, Mass.

Title

Elias Boardman House :corner of Pleasant and Salem Streets, circa 1930

Description

The house at the corner of Salem and Pleasant Street is reported to have been built around 1820 by Elias Boardman, around the time of his marriage to Huldah Green, daughter of Reuben Green, a "respectful farmer" who lived on Greenwood Street. According to information submitted to the Massachusetts Historical Commission for the National Register of Historic Places, Elias was an architect, carpenter and builder who had worked on homes in the Beacon Hill section of Boston. Incorporated the open "high-style" typical of that area into his own home, unlike the simpler style found locally. As a result, it was considered to be extravagant and was dubbed open "Boardman's Folly." The submission also notes that "at one time, before indoor plumbing, the house had two owners, each of whom had title to 1/2 the house, 1/2 the yard, 1/2 the well, and 1/2 the back house." The Greek revival-style ell in the back was thought to have been built in the mid-19th century. The street was laid out in 1839 and the road from "Elias Boardman to E.S. Upham" was named Pleasant Street in 1847. The Boardman family was said to have owned the home for more than a century. Elias' grandson Arthur Boardman served as Town Treasurer in the 1920s and 1930s.

Image from the Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department annual calendar, 2021

Photo courtesy of the Wakefield Daily Item.

Contributor

Institution: Lucius Beebe Memorial Library

Wakefield Municipal Gas & Light Department (Wakefield, Mass.)

D'Onofrio, Jayne M.

Coverage

Massachusetts--Middlesex (county)--Wakefield

Date

ca. 1930

Format

image/jpeg

Language

eng

Publisher

Wakefield, Mass. : Wakefield Municipal Gas & Light Department

Subject

Architecture, domestic

Boardman, Elias

Type

still image

Photographs

Original Format

1 picture :black and white

Extent

28 x 20 cm.