William Trowbridge Forbes House

William Trowbridge Forbes House
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
c. 1978 photo
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Location	23 Trowbridge Rd., Worcester, Massachusetts
Coordinates	42°16′20″N71°48′40″W / 42.27222°N 71.81111°W / 42.27222; -71.81111
Area	1.4 acres (0.57 ha)
Built	1898 (1898)
Architect	Barker & Nourse
Architectural style	Tudor Revival
MPS	Worcester MRA
NRHP reference No.	80000636 [1]
Added to NRHP	March 05, 1980

The William Trowbridge Forbes House was a historic house at 23 Trowbridge Road in Worcester, Massachusetts. Built in 1898 to a design by Barker & Nourse, it was one of the city's finest examples of Tudor Revival architecture, and was home to Esther Forbes, author of Johnny Tremain . The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. ^[1] The house was demolished in November 2003. ^[2]

Description and history

The William Trowbridge Forbes House was located in a residential setting northwest of downtown Worcester, and just south of the campus of Worcester Polytechnic Institute on the west side of Trowbridge Street. It was a large 2+1⁄2-story wood-frame structure, with steeply pitched gables, diamond pane windows, and extensive half-timbered stucco exterior. A stone terrace extended along its southern facade. ^[3]

The house was built in 1898 to a design by Barker & Nourse, and it was a prominent local example of the Tudor Revival. It was supposedly built on the site of an early example of residential construction in concrete, designed by Elbridge Boyden; that house was demolished because it could not accommodate modern amenities such as indoor plumbing and electricity. William Forbes, the owner, was a local lawyer and politician who served in the state legislature and as a probate judge. His wife Harriette Merrifield Forbes is locally notable for her interest in, and photography of, local architectural history, and for organization of a local suffragette society that met at the house. Her daughter was Esther Forbes, the writer of children's books best known for Johnny Tremain. ^[3]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in northwestern Worcester, Massachusetts
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Worcester County, Massachusetts

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
2. Semon, Craig S. (April 15, 2012). "Patriot place: Forbes penned 'Johnny Tremain' in Worcester". Telegram & Gazette. Worcester, Massachusetts. p. A.3.
3. "NRHP nomination for William Trowbridge Forbes House". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved October 6, 2015.