Quincy, Mass. Historical and Architectural Survey

61 Bigelow Street

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
Bigelow Street in Quincy Center was laid out between 1876 and 1888 dividing up what was in 1876 a large estate belonging to Charles E. Miller. Number 61 Bigelow Street, probably built by William E. Howe in the 1890's, was originally on a double lot measuring 11,180 square feet. William E. Howe is listed as a commercial traveler in 1888, a bookkeeper in 1898, and in 1898 was with a Boston insurance firm. The Howes are listed as owners of 61 Bigelow Street until at least 1923, but it is unclear whether they actually lived there the entire time or the house was used as rental property. Bigelow Street, as we presently know it, has changed names and addresses several times.

BIBLIOGRAPHY and/or REFERENCES
Assessors Records.
Atlas of the Norfolk County, Mass., 1876
Robinnson's Atlas of Norfolk County, Mass., 1888
Atlas of the City of Quincy, 1897
Atlas of the City of Quincy, 1907
Atlas of the City of Quincy, 1923.
Quincy City Directories, 1904, 1922.

ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE:
The most prominent aspects of this Queen Anne house are its picturesque and asymmetric silhouette and varied walling treatment, from shake shingles on the ground floor and side gable, to regular shingles on the second floor and decorative half timbering in the front gable. The house has also retained the brackets of the cut-off corner window, elements which rarely survive in this type of period house. The fenestration is irregular, composed of a small narrow double window, a horizontal windows, regular sash windows and the typical Queen Anne window, square, with a plain pane surrounded by smaller square lights. The house is set on a granite foundation while the wrap-around porch is set on a brick foundation. It is an attractive component in the Bigelow Street streetscape.

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