thomson comment, 61 warner61 Warner St., Bay State Village
Porter Nutting bought a lot from Samuel Hill, a prominent abolitionist, and built the house at 41 Warner
St. in 1858. He purchased the lot at 61 Warner, also from Samuel Hill in 1860, and built the house soon
after, selling it to James Riley in 1862.
61 Warner St and 41 Warner St. are two of four identical houses in a row.
2.5 years ago, my partner and I bought 41 Warner St. and proceeded with an extensive house
renovation. The house was in considerably worse condition than 61 Warner is. We were both in 61
Warner St. this summer and were able to do a full assessment of its condition and it absolutely does not
need to be demolished.
During the renovation of 41 Warner, I found a framing technique that I had NEVER seen before in my 23
years doing restoration carpentry and general contracting.
I was so surprised that I called in help from my mentor Steve Streible to help me figure out what was
going on.
Steve Streible is a master restoration carpenter and mason with decades of knowledge and an extensive
resume involving significant properties throughout New England. He has also worked for both Historic
Deerfield and Historic New England (formerly the Society for the Preservation of New England
Antiquities).
In 2018, he came to assess 41 Warner St, which is identical to 61 Warner St. Mr. Streible is in his 70s
with a 50+ year career in historic preservation, and he said that he has NEVER seen this building
technique used in Western MA, and only very rarely in Eastern MA.
The house was built post and beam with no studs. Instead, Porter Nutting used mortared bricks to
support the frame. The exterior only had one layer, which was vertical board and batten. This gave the
house a Gothic Cottage look. Inside, the structural brick was parged for smooth walls.
Porter Nutting owned a brickyard around the corner, and it was the Civil War era and materials might
have been scarce or expensive. Maybe this is why he built the houses this way. Regardless, they are a
unique example of ingenuity and engineering.
Around the corner, a few streets over, Florence is in the process of creating a historic district based on
cultural significance. This approach could easily be used for the Baker Hill section of Bay State Village, as
well as Paper Mill Village. The architecture in the neighborhood dates from mid-18th century, and hosts a
wide array of early mill worker housing. There is a rich history of mill life that current residents still
remember. Losing this house at 61 Warner St. to demolition would be an irreparable loss of the
architectural and cultural history of the neighborhood.
Kris Thomson