Sherman Street
According to the 1869 Burlington Directory, Sherman Street previously went by two distinct names. To the east of Water Street, now Park Street, it was Smiths Lane, and to the west, it was Battery Place. The distinction of these two short streets remained until the turn of the century.
44-46 Sherman Street
The 1869 Beers Atlas Map reads "A. Barrows" on this site. City Directories from 1865 forward do not show any Barrows at this location. As the Barrows noted in the directories tended to be laborers and trades people, it is doubtful that they used this land as rental property. The 1890 Hopkins Map notes a F.T. Woods at this location. The 1890 Directory lists a Freeman Wood, minus the 's', at 46 Battery Place. The history of this building remains unclear. It survives today with an almost identical footprint, although the porch may have been a post 1869 addition. The dual front doors suggest that this was originally built as a two family or extended family home.
88 Sherman Street
The 1869 Beers Map reads "school" on this site. According
to the 1869 Directory, this school was "No. 2-Intermediate
and Primary, Champlain street, near Munroe;" The Vermont
Sites and Structures Survey gives this structure a date c. 1875.1
The current structure shows an exact footprint to that of the
1869 map. It is possible that this was a rebuild on exact footings
from a previous wooden structure. However, as most of the schools
in Burlington at this time were constructed of brick, it is possible
that this is the original structure. By the 1873-74 Directory,
mention of a school at this location has disappeared. In the 1875
Directory, a William Fitzgerald, "depot restaurant"
is noted here. The 1881 Directory lists a William Fitzgerald at
30 Smiths Lane, the original address of this structure. Fitzgerald
is also the name at this location on the 1890 Hopkins map. What
happened at this location in the missing year between 1874 and
1875 is a mystery, but it is highly likely that this is the original
structure.
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1 Vermont Sites and Structures Survey, Sherman Street, CD Rom.