Boston, MA ~ c. 1870
Boasting over 4,100 square feet of floor space, this South End Boston residence was chock-full of reclaimed wood framing material.
A stunning brick and stone-facade brownstone, this five-story structure was constructed with a partial basement typical of the area, along with a stylized top floor. The building was framed in standard fashion of late 19th-century South End homes: larger posts and beams were mortised and tenoned, while balloon-framing style studs separated the rooms and 2″ x 8″ floor joists supported each level of the building.
The 9 Milford Street timber salvage operation was carried out in similar style to other South End projects Longleaf Lumber has been involved with this past year. A gut-rehab, the wooden floor joists and subflooring were completely removed from the building, one floor at a time. As the joists were cut from the building, they were shuttled to a nearby jobsite for storage or trucked directly to our warehouse in Cambridge.
Former residents of the building include a schoolteacher and mayor’s aide. In 1876, Mayor Samuel Crocker Cobb’s clerk, James L. Hillard, resided at 9 Milford (His salary at the time? A whopping $1,800.00 annually.). By 1878, Emma E. Chase, a ‘Third Assistant’ at the Winthrop School on nearby Tremont Street, was recorded as a resident of 9 Milford Street.