Amos Gerald House

Amos Gerald House

1970 photo
Location 107 Main St., Fairfield, Maine
Coordinates 44°35′5″N 69°35′54″W / 44.58472°N 69.59833°W / 44.58472; -69.59833Coordinates: 44°35′5″N 69°35′54″W / 44.58472°N 69.59833°W / 44.58472; -69.59833
Area 0.3 acres (0.12 ha)
Built 1910 (1910)
Architectural style Medieval Revival
NRHP Reference # 80000252[1]
Added to NRHP June 24, 1980

The Amos Gerald House is a historic house at 107 Main Street in Fairfield, Maine. Built c. 1910 by Maine businessman Amos Gerald, the house is notable both for its architecture, which is best described as resembling a medieval castle, and for its association with Gerald, who was a major proponent of electrification in the state, and who built many of the state's (now defunct) trolley systems. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.[1]

Description and history

The Gerald House is set on the northwest side of Main Street (United States Route 201) on the fringe of Fairfield's central business district. It is a two story building with a prominent centrally-placed three-story round tower that has a crenellated parapet. The building is fashioned out of concrete blocks that are finished to resemble rusticated stone. Its roof is flat, and the main roof originally had a parapet similar to that of the tower. Surrounding the tower on the front is a single-story porch supported by thick columns, also fashioned out of concrete blocks, and sporting a crenellated parapet. A wood frame addition extends to the rear of the main block.[2]

Amos Gerald (1841-1913) was born in nearby Benton, and settled in Fairfield in the 1860s after traveling to the American West. He is principally known for establishing more than a dozen electric trolley systems across the state of Maine, and establishing the state's first electric power plant in Fairfield in 1886. He supposedly personally supervised the fabrication of the concrete blocks that were used in building this house, which may be the first residential structure in the state built using that material. It is the only known house in the state with medieval castle features.[2]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 "NRHP nomination for Amos Gerald House" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved 2015-03-01.
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