Saturday, February 09, 2013 at 12:18 AM

 

Inventory No: HRV.154   

Historic Name: Haskell, Lt. Moses - Willard, Abel House

Common Name: Saint Benedict Priory - Saint Theresa's Monastery

Address: 252 Still River Rd

City/Town: Harvard

Village/Neighborhood: Still River

Local No: 25-21

Year Constructed:

Architect(s):

Architectural Style(s): Colonial Revival; Georgian

Use(s):Agricultural; Chapel; Dairy; Dining Hall; Horse Or Cattle Farm; Monastery; Single Family Dwelling House

Significance: Agriculture; Architecture; Philosophy; Recreation; Religion

Area(s): HRV.C: Still River

Designation(s):

 

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FORM B - BUILDING A s s e s s o r s 25-21

USGS quad Hudson

a r e a S t i l l R i v e r

• •

•

Massachusetts H i s t o r i c a l Commission 80 Boylston S t r e e t Boston MA 02116

Recorded by: Dempsey & F i t z P a t r i c k

O r g a n i z a t i o n : Harvard H i s t o r i c ^ ECEIVE Commission

Date: March 1994

form # I5H

Town Harvard

P l a c e S t i l l R i v e r

Address

252 S t i l l R i v e r Road

i s t o r i c Name

H a s k e l l - W i l l a r d House

se: P r e s e n t O r i g i n a l

p r i o r y farm

JUN 1 5 1994

MASS. HIST. COMM. «

a t e of c o n s t r u c t i o n 1749

ource Nourse

t y l e Georgian

Form c e n t e r chimney

A r c h i t e c t N/A

E x t e r i o r M a t e r i a l :

Roof wd s h i n g l e W a l l / t r i m clapboard Foundation stone

Outbuildings none See r e a r of form f o r

d e t a i l e d d e s c r i p t i o n

A l t e r a t i o n s a d d i t i o n s See r e a r of form f o r

d e t a i l e d d e s c r i p t i o n

Condition good

Moved no

Acreage 8.2 a c r e s

S e t t i n g v i l l a g e See r e a r of form f o r

d e t a i l e d d e s c r i p t i o n

c . ( »

BUILDING FORM 250 & 252 S t i l l R i v e r Road, S t i l l R iver

ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION

The H a s k e l l - W i l l a r d House, a 1749 center-chimney Georgian s t r u c t u r e , i s located i n the mid-section of S t i l l R i v e r , a l i n e a r v i l l a g e l o c a t e d along the e a s t e r n ridge of the Nashua R i v e r v a l l e y , i n the south-west corner of Harvard. This two-and-a-half-story, clapboard-sheathed house measures f i v e bays i n width and two p i l e s i n depth. The symmetrically f e n e s t r a t e d facade has a center entry with multi-paned transom, i t s I o n i c p i l a s t e r door surround and s c r o l l e d e n t a b l a t u r e with pineapple were salvaged from a Salem, Massachusetts s t r u c t u r e by Eleanor Hudson Welch. Window treatment c o n s i s t s of 6/9 sash windows with unadorned frames. Two-and-a-half-story, shed-roofed bays (commonly r e f e r r e d t o as "Beverly jogs") p r o j e c t l a t e r a l l y from e i t h e r gabled end. A r e a r gabled e l l was added to the house i n the early-1800s as was the long, one-and-a-half-story, gabled c a r r i a g e house which p r o j e c t s from the r i g h t l a t e r a l w a l l . The r e a r e l l was elongated i n the 1940s. Following i t s a c q u i s i t i o n by the S a i n t Benedict Center, t h i s property experienced s e v e r a l expansion campaigns. I n 1960, a two-and-a-half-s t o r y , f i v e bay wide, center-entry s t r u c t u r e was constructed t o the r i g h t of the main house. Four years l a t e r , a s i m i l a r l y s i z e d gable block s t r u c t u r e was erected o f f the r e a r e l l . The main house and these two gable-roofed additions c u r r e n t l y serve as S t . Therese's Monastery. I n 1968, S a i n t Catherine's Annex, a long s i n g l e - s t o r y gable-roofed s t r u c t u r e , was constructed to the r i g h t of the 1960 gable block. This r e f e c t o r y , r e c e n t l y renovated i n t o guest q u a r t e r s , was l i n k e d to the adjacent s t r u c t u r e and the main house by a s i n g l e - s t o r y , screened arcaded walkway.

HISTORICAL NARRATIVE x see c o n t i n u a t i o n s h e e t

One of S t i l l R i v e r ' s e a r l i e s t and l a r g e s t farms, the H a s k e l l -W i l l i a r d House i s b e l i e v e d to have been constructed by Moses H a s k e l l , a l i e u t e n a n t who served i n the 1755 expedition to expel the French from t h e i r f o r t i f i e d p o s i t i o n s i n the Bay of Fundy (Nourse 1894:292). The house was acquired i n the late-1750s by Nathaniel Martyn, one of Harvard's e a r l i e s t p h y s i c i a n s . Upon Martyn's removal to Bolton,

REFERENCES Nourse, History of Harvard, 1894. Savage, Memoirs of Old Harvard Days, 1924. Scorgie, Deed Research and Notes on S t i l l R i ver, undated. Holman, Map of Harvard, 1831. Beers, Atlas of Worcester County, 1870. Richards, Atlas of Worcester County, 1898. Walling, Afap of Worcester County, 1857V

x Recommended for l i s t i n g i n the National R e g i s t e r of H i s t o r i c P l a c e s . See S t i l l R i v e r National R e g i s t e r C r i t e r i a Statement form.

INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET Community Property Address Harvard 250 & 252 S t i l l R i v e r Road

Massachusetts H i s t o r i c a l Commission 80 Boylston S t r e e t Boston, Massachusetts 02116

HISTORICAL NARRATIVE (continued)

the property passed to Harvard graduate and l o c a l p h y s i c i a n Peter Green i n 1769. The house r e v e r t e d back to H a s k e l l ownership i n 1778 when Green s o l d i t to J o s i a h H a s k e l l . H a s k e l l was a l i e u t e n a n t during the Revolution and following the war he rose t o the rank of c o l o n e l i n the L a n c a s t e r m i l i t i a . Throughout the l a t e - 1 8 t h century he served numerous terms as a Harvard Selectman. I n 1802, the house passed to Abel W i l l a r d who i s c r e d i t e d with enlarging the s t r u c t u r e . The property remained i n the W i l l a r d family throughout the 19th century. Abel's grandson Luther held seventy head of c a t t l e . I n the e a r l y - 2 0 t h century Luther W i l l a r d ' s h e i r s s o l d the property to George Hudson. Hudson gave the property to h i s daughter Eleanor Hudson Welch as a wedding present. The house was purchased by the S a i n t Benedict Center i n the late-1950s.

INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET Massachusetts H i s t o r i c a l Commission Massachusetts A r c h i v e s B u i l d i n g 22 0 Morrissey Boulevard Boston MA 02116

Community Harvard Property Address 2 52 S t i l l R i v e r Rd Form # 154

Augmented by CWD 199 6/97

N a r r a t i v e H i s t o r y , continued.

The a g r i c u l t u r a l h i s t o r y of the H a s k e l l - W i l l a r d Farm f o l l o w s a c i r c u i t o u s path: the development of an e a r l y homestead i n t o a d a i r y farm, i t s subsequent h i a t u s from a g r i c u l t u r a l use, and i t s mid-to-late 2 0th century r e v i v a l as the diary-farm core of a r e l i g i o u s community. The e a r l i e s t years of the farm's h i s t o r y , when i t changed hands frequently, are not now w e l l known, but the W i l l a r d f a m i l y ownership i s b e t t e r understood. Abel W i l l a r d (1763-1840) bought the property i n 1802, f i v e y e a r s a f t e r h i s marriage to Eleanor Bowles. Abel e v e n t u a l l y l e f t the farm t o h i s only s u r v i v i n g c h i l d William Bowles W i l l a r d (1802-1891), perhaps best known f o r h i s involvement with the S t i l l R i v e r B a p t i s t Church. He and h i s f i r s t wife Abiah Woods had seven c h i l d r e n , f i v e daughters and two sons; a f t e r her death W i l l a r d married two a d d i t i o n a l times before h i s own death. Savage's Memoirs of Old Harvard Days d e s c r i b e d W i l l a r d i n 1863 as "one of the town's l a r g e s t farmers" and owner of one of the town's t h r e e mowing machines, but a t about t h a t time he turned over h i s farm t o h i s sons.

Luther W i l l a r d (1836-1920) stayed on the home farm and Abel (b. 1841), who s o l d out to h i s brother, took over a Prospect H i l l Farm which was e v e n t u a l l y purchased by C l a r a Sears and s u r v i v e s today as the farm complex a t the F r u i t l a n d s Museums. (See NR Nomination.) S h o r t l y a f t e r he took over the farm Luther married E l l e n Ruth Dudley, daughter of S i l a s Dudley, another Prospect H i l l farmer who s o l d h i s farm to C l a r a Sears and whose house now s e r v e s as the D i r e c t o r ' s Residence. The farm d e s c r i b e d i n the a s s e s s o r s l i s t s of 1870 was la r g e i n acreage and animal holdings. The e i g h t y - s i x acre home farm was augmented with fourteen a c r e s of sprout land and seven of i n t e r v a l e . I n a d d i t i o n to a dwe l l i n g and a barn, the farm yard included two sheds and a c h a i s e and a wagon. Three horses, a swine, s i x t e e n cows, and s i x y e a r l i n g s completed the farm holdings. By 1882 s e v e r a l changes were evident: the i n t e r v a l e land was gone and a second barn had been added, w h i l e the herd was l a r g e r , i n c l u d i n g twenty-one cows, s i x h e i f e r s , and f i v e y e a r l i n g s . I n 1900 more land had been acquired, an acr e of pasture, nine a c r e s of Woodbury land, and twenty-two of H a s k e l l land, and the herd was l a r g e r s t i l l , f o r t y cows, twelve h e i f e r s , and a b u l l ; a barn and a shed had been l o s t . By 1910, new f e a t u r e s were included i n the W i l l a r d assessment: a hen house, a milk house, and a pump house, a l l s i g n s of a modernizing farm. The three cottages l i s t e d , a l l c o n s i d e r a b l y lower i n value than most as s e s s e d houses, s i g n a l the growing importance of seasonal r e c r e a t i o n a l v i s i t o r s to Harvard and W i l l a r d ' s d e c i s i o n to c a t e r to them. Ten ye a r s l a t e r W i l l a r d had added two more cottages and re-configured h i s d e s c r i p t i o n of h i s primary holdings, so t h a t what had been the home farm of e i g h t y - s i x a c r e s and the sprout land of fourteen a c r e s became the

INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET Massachusetts H i s t o r i c a l Commission Massachusetts A r c h i v e s B u i l d i n g 220 Morrissey Boulevard Boston MA 02116

Community Harvard Property Address 2 52 S t i l l R i v e r Rd Form # 154

Augmented by CWD 1996/97

N a r r a t i v e H i s t o r y , continued.

twenty-acre home farm and eighty a c r e s " e a s t of the road." No animals are reported i n the assessment, the l a s t before Luther's death t h a t same year.

A f t e r h i s death Luther's e s t a t e was d i v i d e d among h i s four c h i l d r e n , and over time George S. Hudson, the husband of Mabel W i l l a r d Hudson, bought out the other h e i r s and the house and a p o r t i o n of the property went to h i s daughter Eleanor Hudson and her husband A u s t i n H. Welch i n 1939. No longer were animals kept on the farm, and a l l but twenty a c r e s had been d i s p e r s e d . The v a l u e of the house r a i s e d considerably, p a r t i c u l a r l y a f t e r the c o n s t r u c t i o n of the l a r g e r e a r e l l i n the 194 0s and the C o l o n i a l R e v i v a l remodeling t h a t i s c l e a r from h i s t o r i c photographs. Other b u i l d i n g s t h a t stood on the farm were e i t h e r demolished or were then a s s o c i a t e d with other p a r c e l s , i n c l u d i n g the barn, milk house, pump house, and hen house. Eleanor and her husband used the new r e a r of the house while her s u r v i v i n g aunt Eleanor W i l l a r d M e r r i f i e l d occupied the older f r o n t . Eleanor Hudson Welch was an a c t i v e clubwoman and antigues expert who wrote and l e c t u r e d on h i s t o r i c a l and c o l l e c t i n g t o p i c s . She was p a r t i c u l a r l y proud of her and her husband's descent from Simon W i l l a r d and hoped to make a beguest of the house and i t s f u r n i s h i n g s to Harvard U n i v e r s i t y . A f t e r these W i l l a r d k i n died i n 1948 and 1949, C h a r l e s W i l l a r d t r i e d to o f f e r the house to Old Sturbridge V i l l a g e but the c o s t of moving the b u i l d i n g became a stumbling block.

At about t h i s time, the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, a c o n s e r v a t i v e Roman C a t h o l i c r e l i g i o u s community l o c a t e d i n Cambridge, began considering removal to a r u r a l l o c a t i o n . The group began i n the post-War years as a student r e l i g i o u s group a t Harvard U n i v e r s i t y and q u i c k l y a t t r a c t e d a wider group of v e t e r a n s and other young people i n search of s p i r i t u a l support and who were engaged by the group's strong t h e o l o g i c a l t e a c h i n g s . Under the l e a d e r s h i p of Catherine Goddard C l a r k e and Leonard Feeney, S.J., the group became i n c r e a s i n g l y r a d i c a l , p a r t i c u l a r l y around the d o c t r i n e of s a l v a t i o n outside the Roman C a t h o l i c Church, and were well-known f o r t h e i r demonstrations on the Boston Common. As the church h i e r a r c h y grew impatient with the group, e v e n t u a l l y p l a c i n g Feeney under i n t e r d i c t , the membership withdrew from both church and community i n t o a r e l i g i o u s s o c i e t y of t h e i r own design. Gathering together i n a c l u s t e r of b u i l d i n g s near the i n t e r s e c t i o n of Massachusetts Avenue and Prospect S t r e e t i n Cambridge, the group g r a d u a l l y adopted the r u l e s and r o u t i n e of the c e l i b a t e r e l i g i o u s , as husbands and wives separated and the group began to r a i s e t h e i r c h i l d r e n communally. Although i t i s not c u r r e n t l y known how the group became acquainted with S t i l l R i v e r , they purchased the W i l l a r d

INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET Massachusetts H i s t o r i c a l Commission Massachusetts A r c h i v e s B u i l d i n g 22 0 Morrissey Boulevard Boston MA 02116

Community Harvard Property Address 252 S t i l l R i v e r Rd Form # 1 5 4

Augmented by CWD 199 6/97

N a r r a t i v e H i s t o r y , continued.

property and moved l a t e i n the 1950s i n t o a community they named the S a i n t Benedict Center.

The group q u i c k l y added other land to the W i l l a r d holdings, and by 1960, when t h e i r holdings were s t i l l t a x a b l e , the community reported over s i x t y a c r e s of H a s k e l l land, an u n s p e c i f i e d amount of Bigelow land, a barracks b u i l d i n g had been added and another b u i l d i n g was remodeled. T h e i r a g r i c u l t u r a l improvements were c l e a r as w e l l , and by 1974 they had added four s i l o s , a new barn, and a greenhouse. That same year they reported a l a r g e 13 0-acre p a r c e l with most of t h e i r b u i l d i n g s , as w e l l as a n e a r l y f i v e - a c r e p a r c e l with the dwelling, garage, shop, and greenhouse, two s m a l l e r acre-and-a-half l o t s w ith d w e l l i n g s , and another n e a r l y e i g h t acre p a r c e l . On t h e i r tax-exempt land they continued to add b u i l d i n g s to t h e i r complex, r e p o r t i n g the a d d i t i o n of a chapel and a d i n i n g h a l l . I t i s not known how these p r i m a r i l y urban and suburban d w e l l e r s became farmers but they did, r e t u r n i n g the land to a g r i c u l t u r a l uses to support the community. Only the Websters a t Whitney Lane Farm (MHC #174) had a l a r g e r c a t t l e herd, the Center r e p o r t i n g t h i r t y - f i v e c a t t l e and t h i r t y swine. The group e v e n t u a l l y purchased the H a s k e l l House a t 248 S t i l l R i v e r Road, the neighboring property to the north, as w e l l as 246 and 259 S t i l l R i v e r Road (see forms #155 and #152).

F i s s u r e s w i t h i n the community became apparent s h o r t l y a f t e r t h e i r move to Harvard. Some members became d i s s a t i s f i e d with the r u l e s of the community and one sought to withdraw and went to c o u r t to take h i s sons with him. The p u b l i c i t y t h i s caused, coupled with the death of Clarke and the aging of Feeney, e v e n t u a l l y caused a s p l i t w i t h i n the community, as those who h e l d to the c o n s e r v a t i v e elements separated from those f a v o r i n g a more open community and a rapprochement with the church. The most c o n s e r v a t i v e members c u r r e n t l y r e t a i n the name S a i n t Benedict Center and t h e i r property i s p r i m a r i l y l o c a t e d near t h e i r chapel on the west s i d e of the road and near t h e i r new dormitory on the e a s t s i d e of the road. A f t e r d i s c u s s i o n s which began i n 1971, many of the Center's members e v e n t u a l l y became t r a d i t i o n a l C a t h o l i c Benedictine brothers and s i s t e r s . These s i s t e r s removed from S t i l l R i v e r to Petersham while the brothers remain, r e t a i n i n g c o n t r o l of the W i l l a r d and H a s k e l l houses and the land behind them as S a i n t Benedict P r i o r y . They r a i s e some feed crops but have g e n e r a l l y l e f t farming i n r e c e n t y e a r s . A s m a l l group of s i s t e r s remain from the o r i g i n a l group, S a i n t Theresa House, r e t a i n i n g c o n t r o l of the p r o p e r t i e s between the P r i o r y and the Center. They continue to farm, s e l l i n g market garden crops to the p u b l i c .

INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET Massachusetts H i s t o r i c a l Commission Massachusetts A r c h i v e s B u i l d i n g 22 0 Morrissey Boulevard Boston MA 02116

Community Harvard Property Address 252 S t i l l R i v e r Rd Form # 154

Augmented by CWD 1996/97

REFERENCES, continued.

H a r r i s , I d a . T y p e s c r i p t Harvard History, 1894-1940, 1940. Harvard Tax V a l u a t i o n s 1866, 1870, 1882, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1945,

1955, 1960, 1969, 1974.

JUL 2 5 i> :/

INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET

Massachusetts H i s t o r i c a l Commission Massachusetts A r c h i v e s B u i l d i n g 220 Morrissey Boulevard Boston MA 02125

Community Harvard Form #154

Area

Property Address

INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET Community Pr o p e r t y Address Harvard 250 & 252 S t i l l River Rd.

Massachusetts H i s t o r i c a l Commission 80 B o y l s t o n S t r e e t Area Form # Boston MA 02116 S t i l l River

INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET Community Propert y Address Harvard 250 & 252 S t i l l River Rd.

Massachusetts H i s t o r i c a l Commission 80 B o y l s t o n S t r e e t A r e a F o r m #

Boston MA 02116 S t i l l River /5</