The Charles Maynard House is a historic house at 459 Crafts Street in

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately west of downtown Boston. Newton resembles a patchwork of thirteen villages, without a city center. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population of ...

. The house was built in 1897, and is a fine local example of a Queen Anne Victorian with some Colonial Revival styling. It is also notable as the home of naturalist and taxidermist

Charles Johnson Maynard Charles Johnson Maynard (May 6, 1845 – October 15, 1929) was an American naturalist and ornithologist born in Newton, Massachusetts. He was a collector, a taxidermist, and an expert on the vocal organs of birds. In addition to birds, he also s ...

. 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 ...

in 1996.

Description and history

The Maynard House is located on the north side of Crafts Street, a historic thoroughfare connecting Waltham and

Newton Corner Newton Corner is one of the thirteen villages within the city of Newton in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. Newton Corner borders Brighton, a neighborhood of Boston, as well as the city of Watertown, Massachusetts. Newton Corner ...

. It is a -story wood-frame structure, with asymmetrical massing and a complex roofline typical of the Queen Anne period. The walls are finished in wooden clapboards, and the building rests on a fieldstone foundation. The hip roof is pierced by a number of gabled dormers, and there is an octagonal tower with pyramidal roof at one corner. The front porch has a flat roof, and is supported by Tuscan columns with a simple balustrade. The house was built in 1897, and is a fairly typical of the suburban residential construction taking place in Newton at that time. The house was built on part of what was once the Maynard family farm, subdivided from property owned by

's brother. Charles Johnson Maynard was a prominent naturalist and taxidermist who worked and lived in Boston for many years, but returned to Newton in 1897, and remained in this house until his death in 1929. Maynard was a prominent local lecturer, and published at least eleven books on bird-related topics.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maynard, Charles, House Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Newton, Massachusetts Queen Anne architecture in Massachusetts Houses completed in 1897 Colonial Revival architecture in Massachusetts

Description and history

See also

References