Circa 1902 Maine Half Double Fixer Upper $45K

OHU50K Notes    $45,000

Built in 1902, this Maine fixer upper half double is located in Strathglass Park, the state’s first planned community. Turn-of-the-century New York architect Cass H. Gilbert designed these three-story duplexes which came in seven exterior variations.  Gilbert also designed the US Supreme Court building in Washington DC.  Today, many of the homes in Strathglass Park have fallen into disrepair.  Such a cultural history deserves to be preserved.

 

12 Erchles Street, Rumford, ME 04276   $45,000

• Contact Realtor: Lynda Hebert – Hebert Realty Group
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Industrialist Hugh J. Chisholm, recognizing the falls’ potential for the manufacture of paper, began operating the Oxford Paper Company mill in 1893. During this period of prosperity, a significant number of Victorian and Edwardian homes were built. In fact, to avert the slum housing endemic at Lowell Massachusetts, Chisholm commissioned a planned 30-acre company town of duplexes, known as Strathglass Park, built of “brick and stone and slate, and we will provide not merely for a house, but for comfort, elegance and social gratification.”

According to Wikipedia, “With attractive lawns and broad, tree-lined streets, all maintenance was provided by the Oxford Paper Company. Even valet service was included. Tenants paid a rent of $9.00 per month, plus $1.00 per month to the Rumford Falls Power Company, also belonging to Chisholm. But in 1948, the incomplete development was no longer economically viable, and the houses were sold for between $3,400 and $3,900 per duplex.”

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