Wheelock Law Office

Last updated
Wheelock Law Office
Wheelock Law Office, Barre, Vermont.jpg
Wheelock Law Office was home to the "Barre Partnership" from 2019 to 2023 [1] [2]
USA Vermont location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location135 N. Main St., Barre, Vermont
Coordinates 44°11′53″N72°30′13″W / 44.19806°N 72.50361°W / 44.19806; -72.50361
Area1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built1871 (1871)
Architectural styleSecond Empire
NRHP reference No. 75000148 [3]
Added to NRHPJune 18, 1975

The Wheelock Law Office is a historic commercial building at 135 North Main Street in the city of Barre, Vermont. Built in 1871 for a prominent local lawyer, it is a fine example of Second Empire architecture, and a rare surviving domestically scaled building in an area now primarily filled with larger commercial buildings. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. [3]

Contents

Description and history

The Wheelock Law Office building stands in the central business district of Barre, on the north side of North Main Street between Keith Avenue and Pearl Street. It is sandwiched on a narrow lot between a 20th-century single-story commercial block and a three-story late 19th-century commercial building. It is a 1-1/2 story brick building, with a bell cast mansard roof providing a full second story. The right side of the front consists of a 2-1/2 story tower, with the building entrance at the base in a round-arch opening. A round-arch window is set above it in the second story, and the tower is capped by a bell cast roof with oculus window dormers. The left side of the front has a large display window on the first floor, and gabled dormers flanking an oculus window dormer in the steep portion of the mansard. A modern single-story addition projects to the rear. The interior of the building retains no historic elements, having been repeatedly remodeled for varying commercial uses. [4]

The building was erected in 1871 for Langdon Wheelock, then one of the city's leading attorneys. The area was at the time a tree-lined residential street, with Wheelock's house, a Federal period brick building demolished in 1946, located next door. Since Wheelock's death in 1873, the building has seen a variety of commercial uses, including as a bank and a senior center. It is a rare reminder of the once-domestic scale of the surrounding streetscape. [4]

The Granite Savings Bank and Trust Company was located in the building for over fifty years, starting in April 1885. [5] In 1920 the building was renovated. [5]

The building was later owned by the City of Barre. [6] In 2019 the building became home to a welcome center operated by the Barre Partnership. [2] The Barre Partnership is Barre's officially designated community revitalization community organization. [7]

The city sold the building in 2023 to a restaurant and community store, which promised to preserve the historic nature of the building. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Savings Bank Block</span> United States historic place

The Savings Bank Block is an historic commercial building at 215 Lisbon Street in downtown Lewiston, Maine. Built in 1870, it is a fine local example of commercial Second Empire architecture, and is representative of the city's early development as an industrial center. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clark Houses</span> Historic house in Massachusetts, United States

The Clark Houses are historic houses in Natick, Massachusetts. The houses were built in 1870 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian Baptist Church</span> Historic church in Vermont, United States

The Italian Baptist Church is a historic church at 10 North Brook Street in the city of Barre, Vermont. Built in 1906-08 largely with volunteer labor, it is a distinctive regionalized example of vernacular church architecture more typically found in northern Italy. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Masonic Temple (Belfast, Maine)</span> United States historic place

The former Masonic Temple is a historic commercial and social building at Main and High Streets in downtown Belfast, Maine. Built in 1877, it is one of the city's most elaborately decorated buildings, featuring Masonic symbols. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. While there are active Masonic organizations in Belfast, they now meet in a modern facility on Wight Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lambert Packard</span> American architect

Lambert Packard (1832-1906) was an American architect from St. Johnsbury, Vermont.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colony's Block</span> United States historic place

Colony's Block is a historic commercial building at 4-7 Central Square in the heart of Keene, New Hampshire. The five-story brick building was built in 1870 to a design by Worcester, Massachusetts, architects E. Boyden & Son, and is the city's most prominent example of Second Empire architecture. In addition to being a long-standing commercial center, the building housed the city library from 1870 to 1877. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">H. Hudson Law Office</span> United States historic place

The H. Hudson Law Office is a historic commercial building on Hudson Avenue in the center of Guilford, Maine. Built c. 1867, it is an architecturally distinctive small Italianate/Second Empire structure, which was used by two generations of lawyers in the Hudson family as a law office. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sproul's Cafe</span> United States historic place

The Sproul's Cafe building is a historic commercial building at 128 Main Street in Bar Harbor, Maine. The 2-1/2 story Second Empire building was built in 1880, and was home until 1903 of a nationally recognized gathering place for Bar Harbor's summer residents. The building is a rare local commercial survivor of Bar Harbor's heyday as a summer resort community. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. Its present retail tenant is a tourist-oriented shop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belfast National Bank</span> United States historic place

The Belfast National Bank is a historic commercial building at Main and Beaver Streets in downtown Belfast, Maine. Built in 1879 and enlarged twelve years later, it is one of the city's most elaborately decorated buildings. It was designed by George M. Harding, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bank Block</span> United States historic place

The Bank Block is a historic commercial building at 15 Main Street in Dexter, Maine. Built in 1876 for two local banks, with a new fourth floor added in 1896, it is a significant local example of Italianate and Romanesque architecture, designed by Bangor architect George W. Orff. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Bennington station</span>

North Bennington station is a historic railroad station at Depot Street and Buckley Road in North Bennington, Vermont. Built in 1880 as a passenger station, this Second Empire brick building is a surviving reminder of North Bennington's former importance as a major railroad hub in southwestern Vermont. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 as North Bennington Depot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Marsh Law Office</span> United States historic place

The Charles Marsh Law Office is a historic building at 72 Hartland Hill Road in Woodstock, Vermont. Now a private residence, this moved and altered structure, built about 1797, is the oldest surviving example of a detached law office in the state. It was built for lawyer Charles Marsh, and is where his sons George Perkins Marsh and Lyndon Arnold Marsh trained for and/or practiced law. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beck and Beck Granite Shed</span> United States historic place

The Beck and Beck Granite Shed is a historic granite shed at 34 Granite Street in the city of Barre, Vermont. Built in 1933, it is a rare surviving example of a rectangular granite shed, a late style of granite processing facility. The Beck and Beck Company was started by the area's first German immigrants, and operated until 1960. The building now houses a non-profit and store that repurposes and recycles building materials. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">College Hall (Montpelier, Vermont)</span> United States historic place

College Hall is the central building of the campus of the Vermont College of Fine Arts in Montpelier, U.S. state of Vermont. Located prominently on Ridge Street atop Seminary Hill, this 1872 Second Empire building has been a major visual and architectural landmark in the city since its construction. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its architectural significance in 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scampini Block</span> United States historic place

The Scampini Block is a historic commercial building at 289 North Main Street in the city of Barre, Vermont. Built in 1904, it is an elegant showcase of the skills of local granite carvers, and was for many years a social center for the area's large immigrant stoneworkers. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">E. L. Smith Roundhouse Granite Shed</span> United States historic place

The E.L. Smith Roundhouse Granite Shed is a historic granite shed at 23 Burnham Street in the city of Barre, Vermont. Built in 1889, it is the only known surviving example of a circular granite cutting shed in the United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union Co-operative Store Bakery</span> United States historic place

The Union Co-operative Store Bakery is a historic commercial building at 46 1/2 Granite Street in the city of Barre, Vermont, USA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derby House Hotel</span> United States historic place

The Derby House Hotel is a historic former hotel building at Main and West Streets in Derby, Vermont. Erected in 1896, it was for many years an important element of the social and commercial life of the small community. Now converted into apartments, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reynolds House (Barre, Vermont)</span> Historic house in Vermont, United States

The Reynolds House, currently the Reynolds House Inn, is a historic house at 102 South Main Street in the city of Barre, Vermont. Built in the 1890s, it is a well-preserved high-style example of Late Victorian architecture, exhibiting both Queen Anne and Second Empire features. Built for a local merchant, it is a rare survivor of what was once a series of high-profile residences south of downtown Barre. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2020.

The E.J. Bullock Block is a historic commercial building at 7012 Main Street in Readsboro, Vermont. Built in 1891, it is a prominent local example of Second Empire architecture, with a long history of commercial, social, and civic uses. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 Petenko, Erin (12 April 2023). "Fox Market wins battle for historic Barre building". Washington County: VT Digger. p. Vermont. Archived from the original on 7 June 2024. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  2. 1 2 Delcore, David (17 July 2019). "Council to team up with Partnership on Wheelock Building 'welcome center'". Times Argus. Archived from the original on 16 October 2021. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
  3. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  4. 1 2 Courtney Fisher (1975). "NRHP nomination for Wheelock Law Office". National Park Service . Retrieved 2016-11-26. with photos from 1975
  5. 1 2 "Fifty Years of the Granite Savings Bank and Trust Company". The Barre Daily Times. 13 April 1935. p. 3. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  6. Delcore2, David (30 October 2019). "Council backs teen center". Times Argus. Archived from the original on 5 November 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2021. an iconic city-owned building{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  7. "About Us". Barre Partnership. Retrieved 16 October 2021.