A Virtual Jane’s Walk of Lynwood Place

By Elizabeth Holt

Not far from downtown New Haven, located in the Dwight Street Historic District, is a one-block enclave of buildings dating to the 1880s. Lynwood Place was developed by professionals associated with local businesses and nearby Yale University and opened in 1880, on land formerly owned by the Osborne Carriage Factory on Park Street. Bookended by Edgewood Avenue and Elm Street, the street is relatively narrow, with shallow setbacks from the curb, giving it an intimate feel. Single-family houses which have been converted to multi-family dwellings remain remarkably intact. Plentiful trees contribute to the block’s impression as an urban oasis.

This tour is best experienced on foot or bicycle, as parking is limited. Beginning at 16 Lynwood Place, even-numbered addresses will be to your left and odd-numbered addresses will be to your left. If you do wish to take the tour while driving, please note the one-way direction of Lynwood Place from Elm Street to Edgewood Avenue.

16 Lynwood Place

The tour begins at 16 Lynwood Place, a house rich with classic Queen Anne details. Its street-facing gabled roof is ornamented with clapboard set within vertical strips and hexagonal slate shingles. The scrolled brackets, wide bargeboard, and horizontal frieze panels have been painted with period-appropriate colors that accentuate these details. Above the entrance bay is a decorative sunrise motif, which was popular at the time of construction. The house was built by William E. Ford, proprietor of a drug store on State Street, in 1887.

Sanborn Map, 1886. Click to view a larger version of this image. — Sanborn Map, 1886. *Click to view a larger version of this image.*

As you make your way down the street, notice the prevalence of brick as a building material. Its use can be attributed to new fire codes that were enacted shortly before the street’s development. This Sanborn Map from 1886 shows the houses at 26 through 40 Lynwood Place, on the north side, and 35 through 39, on the south side, as brick structures that are mostly surrounded by older, wood-frame buildings.

19-21 Lynwood Place

The Historic Resources Inventory (1979-1983) describes 19-21 Lynwood Place as “fortunate to be bordered by its garden on the east and that of its neighbor on the south.” Today, the building is bordered by surface parking to its east and south, but it has retained much of its architectural detail. Significant features include windows capped by bluestone keystones, conical roofs capped by decorative finials, and a Colonial Revival entry porch. Records indicate that in 1911 the building was owned by Carrie E. Ford, widow of William E. Ford. Carrie and her son, also William E., resided across the street at 16 Lynwood Place, and it is likely that the Fords bought or built this duplex as a rental property. Originally a two-family house, it has since been turned into a multi-family dwelling.

18 Lynwood Place

While its neighbor at 16 Lynwood Place features more intricate details of Queen Anne residential architecture, 18 Lynwood Place represents a simplification of the style. In keeping with the simpler style, the molded bargeboard and cornice are painted solid white. The gable is inset with a Palladian window and all the windows are held with brownstone lintels and sills. Though most of the houses on Lynwood Place are predominantly brick, take note of the different methods of bonding. Here, the simple brick façade is divided by a row of soldier course bricks, laid standing on end with the narrow edge facing out, and a protruding string course around the base.

23 Lynwood Place

The house at 23 Lynwood Place offers our first break from the Queen Anne style. This Neo-Tudor house was constructed in 1890 for Charles W. Pickett, editor of the New Haven Times-Leader, as a single-family dwelling. Though it has since been converted to a multi-family structure, it was still a single-family home at the time the street was surveyed for the Historic Resources Inventory, in 1979. The stucco and half-timbered façade is typical of the Neo-Tudor, as are the leaded glass windows, which remain beautifully intact, complete with stained glass crests set within the mullion pattern of the first floor windows.

22 Lynwood Place

Much like 16 Lynwood Place, this house is vibrant with Queen Anne details. Notice, however, the difference a monochromatic color scheme makes to the impact of the notable architectural features. The molded bargeboard, paneled horizontal frieze, and decorative brackets appear more subtle when painted white. Where 16 Lynwood Place has slate, here we see scalloped wood shingles, also painted white to blend with the other elements. Though originally constructed as a single-family house, it has been converted to a multi-family dwelling like most of the houses on Lynwood Place.

26 Lynwood Place

While its scale and materials remain consistent with its neighbors, the house at 27 Lynwood Place has undergone the most significant change of all the houses on the street. The half-round white stucco addition dates to a c. 1975 rehabilitation. The Queen Anne details of the gable remain, but the windows have been altered, with a single window replacing two originals on the first floor. It is noteworthy that in 1979, when the Historic Resources Inventory survey for Lynwood Place was completed, Wendell C. Harp was listed as the owner. Harp was a prominent New Haven architect and developer and husband to future City Mayor Toni Harp.

25 Lynwood Place

The largest structure on this block, 25 Lynwood Place, was the last to be constructed and the only one built in the 20th century. This block of 12 apartments was built by W. J. Garland in 1936 for $50,000. Though it appeared nearly 50 years after its neighbor at 23 Lynwood Place, this building also reflects the Neo-Tudor style, with stucco and half-timbering in the gables and stone accents set within the brick. Notably different from its neighbor are the windows, which are a much more recent alteration.

28 Lynwood Place

This house, along with its neighbors to the north, was converted from single-family to multi-family dwellings in the mid-to-late-1970s. Like most of the houses that underwent similar changes, it is notable that so much of the original architectural detail remains after the conversion. Here, the most significant elements lie in the peak of the gable, with carved inset panels in sunburst and cross-timber patterns. Beneath the cornice is a band of brick incised with an anthemion pattern. The house stands as a wonderful example of Queen Anne architecture accented by reserved Eastlake detail, seen here in the carved wooden features of the porch and gable.

34 Lynwood Place

With its low-pitched gabled roof running parallel to the street, this rowhouse disrupts the continuity of street-facing gables on this side of the street. Along with 40 Lynwood Place, it represents the most urban of the block’s brick structures. The 1979 Historic Resources Inventory references a Palladian window with heavy wood moldings on the building’s south facade. In the accompanying photo, the front facade is obscured by a tree and it is unclear if the second story window has been altered since the photo was taken. Though the original owner is unknown, by 1911 the house was occupied by Leo R. Hammond, president and treasurer of the Palladium Company.

33 Lynwood Place

The house at 33 Lynwood Place features a steep gable with flat bargeboards, alternating bands of wood, and cut slate tile, creating a varied façade design. A shed roof brick addition is located on the east elevation. Typical of many late 19th-century houses in this area, its Eastlake details are well preserved. The first residence of the house was Edward E. Field, a bookkeeper at F. H. Brown and Company, a dry goods store on Chapel Street.

35 Lynwood Place

This notably simple structure reflects the Italianate style of 34 Lynwood Place, with Queen Anne influence. However, the vernacular house at 35 Lynwood Place is not without detail. Notice the curvilinear brackets that carry the roof’s overhanging eave, dark brick courses, arched lintels above the windows, and the vertical panels that separate the facade’s double windows.

36-38 Lynwood Place

Like the duplex at 19-21 Lynwood Place, this structure was originally built as a two-family dwelling but was later converted to multi-family. Though described as High Victorian Italianate, it also features Queen Anne/Eastlake details like many of the neighboring houses. The symmetrical front gables are accented by incised bargeboard with floral motifs and recessed panels, resembling a Stick style gable apron. The entrance is covered by a cast iron and glass canopy. The building now houses Chabad at Yale University.

37-39 Lynwood Place

Another two-family to multi-family conversion, this former duplex features similar elements to 19-21 Lynwood Place, though at a grander scale. A central porch acts as a main entrance for all units, and is flanked by symmetrical projecting 2-story bays. Unlike its counterpart, the façade is completely brick and stone that is richly accented by corbelling and bands of brick diaper work. The roofline is surmounted by a wood pediment, featuring a sunburst pattern in its tympanum. The main cornice and also the cornice of the projecting bays are accented with dentils and carved brick courses.

40 Lynwood Place

The tour of Lynwood Place ends at this Italianate row house constructed in 1883. Like 34 Lynwood Place, this townhouse/rowhouse design suggests more urban aspirations than later-constructed houses on the street. When the structure was surveyed in 1979, the front porch and stair had been removed, but they have since been reconstructed. According to the National Register nomination for the Dwight Street Historic District, it was one of the few originally private townhouses of the Dwight area. It was built for Walter B. Law, vice president and treasurer of the Booth and Law Company, manufacturers of varnish, paint, and oils.

We hope you enjoyed this self-guided tour of Lynwood Place. To accompany the tour, follow this map, which features information and photos from the New Haven Historic Resources Inventory.

If the above link does not open the interactive map for you, please copy and paste the following link in your browser: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1I9fwxorrOwNfIP4X36X5dLT4GSha6FZs&usp=sharing

Elizabeth Holt is the Director of Preservation Services at the New Haven Preservation Trust.

New Haven Preservation TrustMay 3, 2021