The Spring Street Historic District encompasses surviving elements of the 19th-century commercial and surviving residential areas of

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropol ...

. Encompassing a portion of the city's Arts District and an eastern portion of its West End, the district has a significant concentration of residential and commercial buildings that survived the city's devastating 1866 fire. The district was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1970.

Description and history

The Spring Street District is bounded on the south and west by Danforth and Brackett Streets. To the northwest it is bounded by a line extending from Brackett and Pine Streets, along Pine Street, across Congress Street to a point on Forest Avenue roughly midway between Cumberland and Congress Streets. To the northeast, it extends along Forest Avenue, splitting blocks to reach the junction of Spring and Oak Streets, and then running along Oak Street and across another block to reach Danforth Street. Prominent buildings from the early 19th century include the Charles Q. Clapp House, the

McLellan-Sweat Mansion The McLellan-Sweat Mansion (or The McLellan House) is a historic house museum on High Street in Portland, Maine. It forms the rear component of the Portland Museum of Art complex. Built in 1800–01, the house was designated a National Historic ...

(later incorporated into the

Portland Museum of Art The Portland Museum of Art, or PMA, is the largest and oldest public art institution in the U.S. state of Maine. Founded as the Portland Society of Art in 1882. It is located in the downtown area known as The Arts District in Portland, Maine. Hi ...

), and the 1833 Park Street Church. Also located in the district are the former fire station housing the Portland Fire Museum, the home of John Neal, the home of

Prentiss Mellen Prentiss Mellen (October 11, 1764December 31, 1840) was a lawyer, politician, and jurist from Massachusetts and Maine. Born in Massachusetts and educated at Harvard, Mellen served for two years as a United States Senator from Massachusetts, an ...

later converted into a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

, and an 1805 mansion designed by

Alexander Parris Alexander Parris (November 24, 1780 – June 16, 1852) was a prominent American architect-engineer. Beginning as a housewright, he evolved into an architect whose work transitioned from Federal style architecture to the later Greek Revival. Parri ...

later converted to the Portland Club. Commercial buildings in the district include the flatiron Charles Q. Clapp Block. Notable later buildings include the Italianate

Victoria Mansion Victoria Mansion, also known as the Morse-Libby House or Morse-Libby Mansion, is a landmark example of American residential architecture located in downtown Portland, Maine, United States. The brownstone exterior, elaborate interior design, o ...

, built in 1860 and now also a museum. Many of the properties in the district were built during periods of prosperity before the 1866 fire. In 1988, 7 protesters, include State Representative

James V. Oliver James V. Oliver is an American politician from Maine. Oliver represented Portland, Maine in the Maine House of Representatives from 1986 to 1994, when he accepted a Country Director position with the Peace Corps. He was replaced in a special elec ...

, were arrested while trying to block the demolition of an 1857 building on Park Street. A month later, Portland's City Council passed a significantly enhanced anti-demolition ordinance which blocked the destruction of buildings in all Historic Districts unless the buildings were found to be dangerous and unusable.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Historic districts in Portland, Maine West End (Portland, Maine) Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Maine National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Maine

Description and history

See also

References