1856 Advertisements

We love ads that show the style of the times, the things people used, the price of certain objects, how people lived or just have beautiful graphics. Here are a few of our favorites from the 1856 Cambridge Almanac and Directory.

1854 Walling Map

This is Cottage Street and the surrounding blocks as they were in 1854. Below are closeups of the first (Pearl to Magazine) and second (Magazine to Pleasant) blocks. We've added notations to show the current house numbers.

(Click on any map to enlarge it.)

This is Cottage Street between Pearl and Magazine Streets. Please note that #14 Cottage is now 14-1/2 Cottage Street. It was moved to the rear of the property in 1890 when the current #14 triple-decker was built.

And this is Cottage Street between Magazine and Pearl Streets.

1848 Residents

The 1848 Directory of Citizens does not list house numbers. Residents (and their respective occupations) of Cottage Street and Cottage Court are as follows:

Andros, Richard S. - business in Boston

Estabrooks, Samuel P. - plasterer

Estabrooks, William - mason

Ewer, Nanthaniel S. - carpenter

Hovey, Henry - business in Boston

Putnam, Barnes - cooper (barrel maker)

COTTAGE COURT

Fuller, Mrs., widow of Oliver, private school

Smith, Sidney - mason

BUSINESS LISTINGS

COOPERS, Barney Putnam

According to the Harvard/Radcliffe directory of Cambridge Buildings, the only homes on Cottage Street and Cottage Court as of 1848 are:

8 Cottage Street (built 1843)

12 Cottage Street (built 1846)

14 Cottage Street, 14 1/2 Cottage (built 1846)

24 Cottage Street (built 1838)

N.B. It should be noted that although this directory states that 101 Pearl/3 Cottage and 5-7 Cottage were built in 1849 and 1851 respectively, the Cambridge Historical Commission and National Register of Historic Places date these two dwellings at 1835.

35 Cottage Street (built 1843)

36 Cottage Street (built 1845)

37 Cottage Street (built 1844)

39-41 Cottage Street (built 1846)

40 Cottage Street (built 1839)

44 Cottage Street (built 1839)

48 Cottage Street (built 1839)

50 Cottage Street (built 1846)

2 Cottage Court (built 1843)

5 Cottage Court (built 1844)

6 Cottage Court (built 1841)

1849 Advertisements

If you lived on Cottage St. in 1849 and you didn't want to saddle up your horse to go down to Starbucks, you may have strolled up Magazine St. to this esablishment to pick up a quick double mocha latte.

This humorous ad shows the clothing style of the time. Isn't it nice to see an ad that doesn't set unrealistic expectations for the average American male?

(Click on any photo to enlarge.)

We like this ad because it shows a very recognizable landmark, the Old State House in Boston.

Source for all three ads: 1849 Cambridge Directory and Alamanac

1849 Directory and Almanac

Unfortunately, the Cambridge Directory and Almanac for 1849 does not list the house numbers of Cottage Street residents. We will attempt assign house numbers by cross referencing other sources; e.g., census data, maps, &c., as they become available. They are as follows:

COTTAGE STREET
Andros, Richard S. S., business in Boston
Burk, Barney, laborer, Pearl St., corner of Cottage
Coburn, Augustus R., provision dealer
Estabrooks, Samuel P., plasterer
Estabrooks, William, mason, rear Cottage [sic]
Ewer, Nathaniel S., carpenter
Grafton, Benjamin, C.B., clergyman
Hicks, Harvey E., Cottage corner of Magazine
Hovey, William
Jones, Elias, currier [sic]
King, Michael, laborer, Pearl corner of Cottage
Loughman, Martin, laborer, Pearl corner of Cottage
Luney, John, laborer, Pearl corner of Cottage
Putnam, Barnes, cooper (builds barrels)
Snow, Humphrey L., business owner @ 27 Water Street, Boston
Way, Nathaniel O., boards Cottage, corner of Magazine
Wilder, Cyrus D., baker
Whitney, Amos, bridge and wharf builder

COTTAGE COURT
Fuller, Mrs., widow of Oliver, private school
Smith, Sidney, mason, Cottage Court (#2, we believe)

Welcome.

Welcome to the Cottage Street Project. Our goal is assemble and organize historical data on the homes and residents of Cottage Street, Cambridgeport, Mass. in an effort to raise awareness of the rich and diverse background of our little neighborhood. If you have any information, particularly historical Cambridgeport photos, please contact the blog administrator.