Structure · Built 1913
Mabel B. King House
The Mabel B. King House at 61 Andover Road is a story-and-a-half shingled house on the south side of Andover Road, east of the Deacon Edward Wright House. It stands on Lot 3 of a plan of Mabel Babcock King's land drawn by Fred W. Stowers in July 1914, a lot of 13,923 square feet with 67 feet on the street, and it was built for her between 1909 and 1914, most likely about 1913. The land under it, though, has a recorded history that goes back to the 1790s as part of the "widow Baldwin place".
In March 1793 Sarah Wooster of Tewksbury, a seamstress, deeded to "my son Benjamin Baldwin", a laborer of Billerica, "one acre and a quarter of land ... with a dwelling house thereon standing", on the highway between Capt. Solomon Pollard on the west and Capt. Josiah Bowers Jr. on the east, with Nahum Baldwin's land behind. Hazen's genealogical register lists a Benjamin Baldwin who married Sarah Pollard, daughter of Edward Pollard, in 1747, and their son Benjamin, born in 1755. In 1799 the younger Benjamin sold the west half acre to John Jefts; that piece became the town's poorhouse lot and later Deacon Edward Wright's homestead.
Benjamin Baldwin died insolvent early in 1809. His widow Elizabeth and his only son declined to administer, and John Lewis of Townsend, "a kinsman by marriage", took charge. The appraisers listed the "house and land about one acre and half of land about half a mile from the meeting house on the road leading to Andover", bounded by the town's land, at $200; the house was let to Joseph Wilson for the year, and in 1811 Lewis sold the place for $150 to Stephen Hill, a wheelwright. It passed between Stephen and William Hill and in 1816 went to Col. John Baldwin, who held it for twenty-four years. When he sold it to George S. Tuttle, a bricklayer, on Christmas Day 1840, the deed called it "the 'widow Baldwin Place'", now two acres with a dwelling house.
Tuttle sold the place, by then "with a dwelling house & barn thereon", to Edward Wright and Daniel Wilson Jr. in 1843, and Wilson released his half to Wright in January 1845. Wright, an engraver, already owned the old poorhouse lot next door, and the 1853 Walling map shows two houses marked "E. Wright" side by side on the Andover road. At his death in 1863 his inventory listed the "Home Stead" and the "Land with buildings adjoining homestead". His heirs held the land until 1901, when the probate court divided the 360-foot frontage among three sets of his grandchildren. The partition plan shows no building on the ground where this house now stands.
Mabel B. King, wife of Harry K. King and one of the grandchildren, bought out her cousins' share of the west lot in 1902 and in October 1904 took a 67.75-foot strip east of it from the other heirs. Neither that deed nor her 1909 mortgage mentions buildings on the strip. In June 1913 she pledged the strip for the first time, and her loan from the B. F. Butler Co-operative Bank rose from $1,400 to $2,600. The plan she recorded in July 1914 draws a house with a front porch and a rear ell on the new Lot 3, while Lot 2 is empty, and from then on the deeds convey "Lot number three with the buildings thereon".
The Kings had moved to Fitchburg by December 1914, when Mabel deeded Lots 2 and 3 to William H. King of Billerica; he deeded them back in February 1915, and she mortgaged them that March to George H. Allard Jr. of Lowell and to William H. King. In May 1919 she borrowed $1,200 from Allard on the two lots. He entered for breach of the mortgage in September 1919, sold the lots to himself, and on October 23, 1919 deeded them to Charles A. Wright of Billerica.
Charles A. Wright sold Lot 3, "with the buildings thereon", to Annie Abele of Somerville in August 1940. She sold the house, "now known as 61 Andover Road", in 1966, and it has since passed through several private owners, a builder and a realty trust. A 1989 area survey described it as a one-and-a-half-story shingled Craftsman house with a shed dormer, a rear screen porch and a garage.
References
- Billerica assessor, parcel 51-56-0: 0.32 acre, Plan Book 31, Plan 69, Lot 3, and its sales history
- Hazen, History of Billerica (1883), Genealogical Register, BALDWIN 12: Benjamin Baldwin married Sarah Pollard, daughter of Edward, in 1747; their son Benjamin was born in 1755
Title References
| Date | Type | Grantor | Grantee | Summary | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 4, 1802 | Deed | Sarah Wooster of Tewksbury, seamstress | Her son Benjamin Baldwin of Billerica, laborer | Sarah Wooster deeds the 1 1/4 acres "with a dwelling house" to her son Benjamin Baldwin | 147/12 (South) |
Billerica town book 10, pages 142-143. Signed March 20, 1793, acknowledged Oct. 10, 1799 before Edward Farmer. For 19 pounds, "one acre and a quarter of land, be the same more or less, lying in Billerica aforesaid, with a dwelling house thereon standing", beginning by land of Capt. Solomon Pollard at the northeast corner on the highway, east by the way about 22 poles, south by Capt. Josiah Bowers Jr. about 22 poles to Nahum Baldwin's land, by Nahum Baldwin in a crooked line to Pollard's southeast corner, and north by Pollard 8 poles. A proviso makes the deed void if Benjamin pays his mother 9 pounds with interest by March 20, 1795. In 1799 he sold the west half acre to John Jefts (S.132/214), later the town poorhouse lot.
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| 1809 | Administration | Estate of Benjamin Baldwin of Billerica, yeoman (died intestate) | John Lewis of Townsend, yeoman, administrator; widow Elizabeth Baldwin | Benjamin Baldwin dies insolvent; inventory of the house and 1 1/2 acres on the road to Andover | Probate #798 |
The widow Elizabeth (her mark) and the "only son" Benjamin Baldwin declined, and John Lewis of Townsend, "a kinsman by marriage", was appointed administrator at Groton May 24, 1809. Inventory March 28, 1809 by Josiah Bowers, Reuben French and Luther French: "house and land about one acre and half of land about half a mile from the meeting house on the road leading to Andover", bounded by the town land, the road, Capt. Josiah Bowers and the heirs of Nahum Baldwin, $200. The estate was insolvent (debts $201.81; real estate "subject to the widow's dower"); the house was let to Joseph Wilson for 1809, and Lewis was licensed to sell the whole real estate.
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| May 28, 1811 | Administrator's Deed | John Lewis of Townsend, yeoman, administrator of Benjamin Baldwin | Stephen Hill of Billerica, wheelwright | administrator's sale of the Benjamin Baldwin place to Stephen Hill | 193/512 (South) |
Billerica town book 10, pages 598-599. March 4, 1811, for $150, "about one acre and an half of land more or less, with the buildings thereon, and it is the estate of which Benjamin Baldwin late of Billerica aforesaid yeoman died seized", bounded west by land belonging to the town of Billerica (the poorhouse lot), north by the road from Billerica meeting house to Andover, east by Capt. Josiah Bowers and south by the heirs of Nahum Baldwin.
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| May 28, 1811 | Deed | Stephen Hill of Billerica, wheelwright | William Hill of Billerica, yeoman | Stephen Hill to William Hill | 193/513 (South) |
Billerica town book 10, page 600. April 8, 1811, for $150, the same one and a half acres "with the buildings thereon, being the estate which Benjamin Baldwin late of Billerica aforesaid died seized and possessed of", with the same bounds (the town, the heirs of Nahum Baldwin, Capt. Josiah Bowers and the road from the meeting house to Andover).
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| March 4, 1814 | Deed | William Hill of Billerica | Stephen Hill of Billerica, wheelwright | William Hill back to Stephen Hill | 207/142 (South) |
Billerica town book 11, page 334. March 3, 1814, for $300, the same one and a half acres with the buildings, Benjamin Baldwin's estate, with the same bounds. Stephen Hill sold it with a second lot to John Baldwin in 1816 (S.213/266).
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| April 11, 1816 | Deed | Stephen Hill of Billerica, wheelwright | John Baldwin of Billerica, gentleman | Stephen Hill to Col. John Baldwin | 213/266 (South) |
Billerica town book 11, pages 394-395. Dated April 9, 1816, acknowledged the same day before Samuel Whiting. For $200, two lots on the road to Andover: one acre and a half "with the buildings thereon being the estate which Benjamin Baldwin late of said Billerica died seized and possessed of", bounded by the town land, the heirs of Nahum Baldwin, Capt. Josiah Bowers and "the road leading to Andover from the meeting house"; and "one other tract of land in said Billerica near Luther French's dwelling house on the opposite side of the road containing one acre more or less", bounded by Francis Kidder, a wall at the heirs of Nahum Baldwin (nineteen rods), "the widow Martha Baldwin about twelve rods" and the road. The second lot is the land of the cottage and of the Sperry lot sold in 1858.
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| January 18, 1841 | Deed | John Baldwin of Billerica, Esquire, Clarissa Baldwin his wife releasing dower | George S. Tuttle of Billerica, bricklayer | John Baldwin sells the "widow Baldwin Place" to George S. Tuttle | 400/2 (South) |
Billerica town book 17, pages 38-39. Dec. 25, 1840, for $600, "a certain tract or parcel of land with a dwelling house thereon called and known by the name of the 'widow Baldwin Place'", two acres, beginning at the northwest corner at the Salem road and land of Edward Wright, south by Wright to land of Henry Baldwin, east by Henry Baldwin to John Baker "or land called the Shed pasture", and back by the pasture to the road.
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| January 18, 1841 | Mortgage | George S. Tuttle of Billerica, bricklayer | John Baldwin of Billerica, Esquire | Tuttle mortgage to John Baldwin | 400/3 (South) |
Billerica town book 17, page 39. Tuttle mortgages the "widow Baldwin Place" back to John Baldwin for $500, the same premises and bounds as his deed of the same day.
Related:
|
|||||
| January 18, 1845 | Deed | George S. Tuttle of Billerica, mason, Hannah S. Tuttle his wife releasing dower | Edward Wright and Daniel Wilson Jr., both of Billerica | Tuttle to Edward Wright and Daniel Wilson Jr. | 456/233 (South) |
Billerica town book 17, pages 552-554. Acknowledged Nov. 9, 1843 before John Baldwin. For $800, "a certain tract or parcel of land with a dwelling house & barn thereon, called & known by the name of the widow Baldwin place", two acres more or less, from the Salem road and land of Edward Wright south to Henry Baldwin, east by Baldwin to John Baker or "the Shed pasture", north by the pasture to the road.
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| January 18, 1845 | Quitclaim | Daniel Wilson Jr. of Billerica, blacksmith, Jane W. Wilson his wife releasing dower | Edward Wright of Billerica, engraver | Wilson quitclaims his half to Edward Wright | 456/234 (South) |
Billerica town book 17, pages 554-555. Jan. 13, 1845, for one dollar, "the one undivided half" of the "Widow Baldwin Place", two acres "with a dwelling house and barn", with the same bounds ("land lately occupied by John Baker deceased or land called the Shed pasture"). Wright now owned the whole place next to his own homestead (the old poorhouse lot).
Title from:
|
|||||
| 1864 | Administration | Estate of Edward Wright of Billerica (died Sept. 11, 1863, intestate) | His son E. Irving Wright of Roxbury, administrator; widow Mary E. Wright; minor children Clara J., Ella F. and Anna E. Wright of Billerica | Edward Wright dies 1863; the widow Baldwin place is the "land with buildings adjoining homestead" | Probate #45207 |
Petition of March 4, 1864 by "the eldest son of said deceased and only child of age", the widow assenting; administration granted at Cambridge March 8, 1864, estate sworn under $5,000. Inventory by William S. Gleason, Ichabod G. Kimball and Moses P. Greenwood, filed April 26, 1864: "Home Stead" $600; "Land with buildings adjoining homestead" $550; "Land adjoining the above, about twelve acres" $550; personal estate $155.50, room by room (kitchen, parlor, pantry, parlor chamber, west chamber, attic, library, entry, cellar, "tools at barn", a sewing machine). No sale of real estate followed: the land passed to the widow (dower) and the heirs, who divided it in 1901.
Title from:
Title passed to:
Related:
|
|||||
| September 24, 1901 | Release of Dower | Mary E. Wright of Billerica, widow of Edward Wright | Edward B. Wright, William Wright, Clara Arch, Anna Elizabeth Richardson, Edith Burridge, Mabel King, Mary E. Kinney and Grace N. Kinney, grandchildren and heirs of Edward Wright | widow Mary E. Wright releases dower to the grandchildren | 335/587 |
For one dollar and other consideration "paid by Grace N. Kinney of Boston", the widow releases to the grandchildren, "heirs-at-law, owners of the reversion", all her right "of dower, homestead, exemption or otherwise, in and to that parcel of land with the buildings thereon, situated in said Billerica and being the same premises described in a deed from Josiah B. French to said Edward Wright dated August 12th 1839, and recorded with Middlesex Deeds, Book 386, Page 196", to hold "in the proportions to which they are entitled to the reversion". Signed Sept. 17, 1901 (witness Amanda King), acknowledged Sept. 20, 1901 before Herbert A. King. Edward Wright had died in 1863 (Hazen); the widow had kept the homestead for 38 years.
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| January 30, 1920 | Partition | Middlesex Probate Court, case 56525 (commissioners John E. Bull, Herbert A. King and Clarence Bowman) | The heirs of Edward Wright: Mary E. and Grace N. Kinney; Edward B. Wright, William J. Wright and Clara Arch; Anna Elizabeth Richardson, Edith Burridge and Mabel King | partition of the Wright land; the strip is the west part of partition Lot 2, with no building | 621/4 |
Warrant of Dec. 10, 1901 to divide among three sets of grandchildren, each holding a third, "a parcel of land bounded northerly on Andover Street 360 ft., easterly on the Underhill estate 320 7/10 ft., southerly on land now or formerly of Parker 303 1/10 ft. and westerly on land now or formerly of Dimock 208 8/10 ft., and being the same premises conveyed to Edward Wright by deed recorded with Middlesex Deeds Book 386 Page 196". The commissioners appraised the whole at $1,100 and on Dec. 20, 1901 set off Lot 1, the westerly 160 feet from "a stone bound on Andover Street by land of one Turner", to the Kinneys at $366.67, "shown on a plan by J. H. Saxton, surveyor ... but the building shown on said plan has since been destroyed by fire". The annexed "Survey of Edward Wright Estate" shows three lots, a large house with an ell on Lot 1 and a small building on Lot 3 by the Underhill estate. Decree confirming the partition Jan. 20, 1902; the copy was recorded only Jan. 30, 1920 (pages 4-7).
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| July 18, 1905 | Quitclaim | E. Urania Wright, widow, with Edward B. Wright, William J. Wright and Clara Arch of Fitchburg; S. Sherburne Mathews, Anna Elizabeth Richardson and Edith L. Beveridge (heirs of Edward J. Wright Jr. and of Anna E. Mathews) | Mabel B. King, wife of Harry K. King, of Billerica | Wright heirs to Mabel B. King, the 67.75-ft strip (later Lot 3) | 379/90 |
For one dollar and other consideration, a parcel "Northerly by Andover Street, sixty-seven and 75/100 feet", easterly by "land conveyed to Herbert H. King" 274 feet, southerly by land of Parker 78.65 feet, and westerly by Mabel B. King's own lot (N.339/194) 241.7 feet, "being part of the premises set off to us in common in partition, Case No. 56525 in the Probate Court of Middlesex County and shown on a plan on file in said Court". Signed Oct. 11, 1904 at Fitchburg (Anna Elizabeth Richardson acknowledged at Danielson Oct. 13, 1904), recorded July 18, 1905. The middle partition lot: its 67.75 feet of frontage and roughly 17,500 square feet match the 18,500-square-foot, 53-foot-frontage house lot of the 1974 survey, so this is the lot of the present house.
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| June 19, 1913 | Mortgage | Mabel B. King of Billerica | B. F. Butler Co-operative Bank of Lowell | Mabel B. King first mortgages the strip; the house follows by 1914 | 506/571 |
For $2,600, both of her Andover Street lots: the 67.75-foot lot "conveyed by deed of Eurania Wright et als., dated Oct. 11, 1904" (N.379/90), and the 160-foot lot from the Kinneys (N.339/194). The same day the bank discharged her earlier mortgage of Nov. 5, 1909 (N.443/386). Margin notes: partial release N.525/354 (1914, Lot 1 on Plan Book 31 Plan 69) and discharge N.607/340.
Related:
|
|||||
| December 10, 1914 | Quitclaim | Mabel B. (Mabel Babcock) King of Fitchburg, Harry K. King her husband releasing | William H. King of Billerica | Lots 2 and 3 "with the buildings thereon" to William H. King | 530/187 |
Pages 187-188. Dec. 9, 1914, "Two certain pieces or parcels of land with the buildings thereon", lots 2 and 3 on the plan of land belonging to Mabel Babcock King, Andover Street (Fred W. Stowers, July 1914, Plan Book 31, Plan 69), subject to the B. F. Butler Co-operative Bank mortgage, which the grantee assumes. Lot 3 is the 67.75-ft strip she bought in 1904.
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| March 12, 1915 | Mortgage | Mabel B. King of Fitchburg | George H. Allard Jr. of Lowell | King mortgage to George H. Allard Jr.: "Lot number three with the buildings thereon" | 534/329 |
Pages 329-330. For $459.92, "two certain pieces or parcels of land with the buildings thereon", lots 2 and 3 on Plan Book 31, Plan 69: lot 2 (13,917 square feet), and "Lot number three with the buildings thereon", 253 ft along lot 2 to a stone wall and land of Parker, 42.68 ft along the wall, 272.65 ft "to Andover street and to the end of a wall", and 67 ft on Andover Street, 13,923 square feet. Discharged in 1919 (N.607/341).
Related:
|
|||||
| March 12, 1915 | Mortgage | Mabel B. King of Fitchburg, Harry K. King her husband | William H. King of Billerica | second mortgage to William H. King | 534/333 |
Pages 333-334. Acknowledged at Fitchburg March 11, 1915. A second mortgage for $200 on lots 2 and 3 "with the buildings thereon", with the same descriptions ("Lot number three with the buildings thereon"). Discharged May 24, 1919 (N.607/340).
Related:
|
|||||
| November 6, 1916 | Quitclaim | William H. King of Billerica, Amanda King his wife releasing dower | Mabel B. King of Fitchburg | William H. King back to Mabel B. King | 563/189 |
Pages 189-190. Feb. 15, 1915 (recorded Nov. 6, 1916), lots 2 and 3 "with the buildings thereon" on the July 1914 Stowers plan (Plan Book 31, Plan 69), back to Mabel B. King, subject to the B. F. Butler Co-operative Bank mortgage.
Title from:
|
|||||
| June 27, 1919 | Discharge of Mortgage | William H. King; B. F. Butler Co-operative Bank of Lowell | Mabel B. King | 1913 and 1915 mortgages discharged | 607/340 |
William H. King discharges Mabel B. King's $200 mortgage of March 1915 (May 24, 1919), and the B. F. Butler Co-operative Bank discharges her mortgage of June 1913 (N.506/571) (June 25, 1919), clearing the way for her new loan from George H. Allard Jr.
Related:
|
|||||
| June 27, 1919 | Mortgage | Mabel B. King of Billerica | George H. Allard Jr. of Lowell | King mortgage of $1,200 to George H. Allard Jr. | 607/341 |
On the same page Allard discharges her mortgage of March 1915 (N.534/329). Dated May 21, 1919, for $1,200 on demand at 6 percent, "Two certain pieces or parcels of land with the buildings thereon being lots numbered two and three" on Plan Book 31, Plan 69, lot 2 of 13,917 and lot 3 of 13,923 square feet. Margin: possession and mortgagee's sale, Book 611, Pages 573 and 575.
Title passed to:
Related:
|
|||||
| September 22, 1919 | Foreclosure Deed | George H. Allard Jr. of Lowell, mortgagee of Mabel B. King | George H. Allard Jr. | Allard forecloses | 611/573 |
Pages 573-575. Certificate of Allard's entry for breach of the May 21, 1919 mortgage (Sept. 8, 1919), then his deed as mortgagee, after a sale under the power, to himself for $1,200, lots 2 and 3 "with the buildings thereon", with the affidavit of sale. The Stearns area notes record: "Lots #2 + 3 to Allard, 1919 by default of mtg 1200."
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| October 23, 1919 | Quitclaim | George H. Allard Jr. of Lowell | Charles A. Wright of Billerica | Allard to Charles A. Wright | 613/463 |
Pages 463-464. Oct. 23, 1919, for one dollar and other valuable consideration ($2.50 in revenue stamps), "two certain pieces or parcels of land with the buildings thereon being lots numbered two and three" on Plan Book 31, Plan 69, with the same bounds as the 1919 mortgage.
Title from:
Title passed to:
|
|||||
| August 28, 1940 | Quitclaim | Charles A. Wright of Billerica, unmarried | Annie Abele of Somerville | Charles A. Wright to Annie Abele; later private sales | 950/433 |
Pages 433-434. Aug. 28, 1940 ($2.75 in stamps), "the land in said Billerica, with the buildings thereon, situated on the southerly side of Andover Street, being Lot No. 3" on Plan Book 31, Plan 69: east by Charles Bennett 272.65 ft, south on the wall by land formerly of Parker now Chester L. Page 42.68 ft, west by Lot 2 253 ft, north on the street 67 ft, "free and clear from any incumbrances"; part of the premises Wright had from George H. Allard Jr. in 1919. Annie Abele, then of Billerica, sold Lot 3 "now known as 61 Andover Road" through her attorney to private owners in 1966; it changed hands privately in 1971, was sold in 1994 to Bedford Builders Inc., in 2001 to a realty trust, and in 2026 to a family trust.
Title from:
|
|||||
Recorded is Book/Page at the Middlesex North Registry of Deeds unless noted; Probate # is a Middlesex probate case, Ctf a Land Court certificate of title.