Quincy, Mass. Historical and Architectural Survey

329 Copeland Street

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
West Quincy, in its early days, was known as the Woods District. In 1644 it was the site of the first productive iron furnace in America. But the West Quincy we know now is the result of the phenomenal expansion of the granite industry which began in the early 19th century, flourished well into the 20th, and achieved such milestones as the first commercial railway in 1826. Hiking through the now silent quarries it is hard to imagine that in 1837 fully one sixth of Quincy's 3000 persons were engaged in the quarrying industry. Historian Daniel Munro Wilson, writing in 1925, tries to capture some of flavor of the change: "Great elevations are being leveled and the very roots of the mountains are being torn out, but the supply is inexhaustible; Stone sheds for the hammering and polishing of the obdurate material have multiplied, so that within the last twenty years these and the houses of the workmen have quite altered the face of the country." (quoted in Holly, Quincy: 350 Years, p. 57.) Quarrying in Quincy has ceased, yet the fashioning of granite, taking place largely in West and Southwest Quincy, is still an important business, utilizing the skills that made Quincy famous.

John Woddick, a stonecutter, built Number 329 Copeland Street in 1876 right in the center of the West Quincy granite activity. The Woddicks stayed until 1904 at which time they sold to John C., a treasurer at Water Street, c. Liberty. In 1922, the Kapples were still there, along with their five children, who though employed, were still living at home. In an extraordinary instance of longevity of ownership, a Mrs. Kapples was still in the house in 1980.

BIBLIOGRAPHY and/or REFERENCES
Assessors Records.
William Churchill Edwards. Historic Quincy. Massachusetts, 1957, p. 116-123.
H. Hobart Holly, Quincy Historical Society.
H. Hobart Holly, Quincy: 350 Years, 1974, p. 51.
H. Hobart Holly, "Quincy's Granite Hills Were Golden". Quincy History, Spring, 1980.
Walter O. Nisu1a, "Granite Drew the Finnish to Quincy". Quincy History, Spring, 1984.

ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE:
The residence at 329 Copeland is a fine example of a gable end to the street Italianate house of the 1870s. The salient characteristics are the double brackets at the eaves, the side entrance and the angular one story bay window which also has double brackets under its roof. A porch supported by square chamfered posts protects the entrance door which has the original front door with double arched glazed panels. The house is set on a granite foundation and is fronted by a granite retaining wall. Next door to this residence is a similar Italianate house but unsympathetic alterations have caused it to lose its architectural integrity unlike this residence. It is a fine component of the Copeland Street streetscape.

Back