The Charles L. Cushman House is an historic house at 8 Cushman Place in
Auburn, Maine. Built in 1889 for the son of a major local shoe manufacturer, it is unusual as an example of Queen Anne architecture executed in stone, and is one of the finest residential commissions of
Lewiston architect
George M. Coombs. The house 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 1980.
Description and history
The Cushman House is set at the southern end of Cushman Place, overlooking the
Little Androscoggin River }
The Little Androscoggin River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 30, 2011 river in Maine. It flows from Bryant Pond in Woodstock () to its confluence with the Andr ...
south of Auburn's downtown area. It is a large -story fieldstone structure, with wood and cut granite trim elements. It has a cross-gable roof, and is set on a full basement. Its design includes many characteristic Queen Anne traits, including asymmetrical facades with ornamented gables, multiple porches, a porte-cochere, and an arched window surrounded by wood carvings. A two-story tower with conical roof is set at one corner.
Charles Cushman was the son of Ara Cushman, owner of the Ara Cushman Company, one of the largest manufacturers of shoes in New England. At the time this house was built in 1889, Charles Cushman was vice president of the company and supervised three factories with of space, with more than 1,000 workers.
George M. Coombs was at the time a prolific and leading architect of the Auburn-Lewiston area, best known for his many industrial and civic buildings. He executed a significant number of commissions in the Auburn-Lewiston area, with this one receiving particular notice in the ''American Architect and Building News'' after its completion.
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See also
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References
{{National Register of Historic Places
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Maine
Houses completed in 1889
Houses in Auburn, Maine
National Register of Historic Places in Androscoggin County, Maine
Queen Anne architecture in Maine