19-21 Decatur Street

This two story, two-by-three bay, gable front house, sits midway along the southern side of Decatur Street.  The house features one-over-one, double hung sash windows, aluminum siding, stone foundation, asphalt shingle roof  with raking eaves, and a small, central chimney.  An enclosed porch with wooden halfwall and two entrances, one on the right side of the front and the other on the left side, extends along the front facade.  One addition protrudes from the rear.

The raking eaves, stone foundation and small, central chimney are all indicative of the 1870s.  The roof was probably, originally slate, and the aluminum siding, a late 20th Century addition, probably replaced clapboard siding.  The windows, too, are probably replacements.

The rear addition appears already on the 1877 Birds-Eye map.  The 1885 Sanborn map indicates a porch along the westerly facade, not the front.  The side porch has been built into the house, as can be seen by the roof extension of the right side.  The 1978 Sanborn map reveals the front porch, which was later enclosed and the rear addition.

The first occupant was most likely Moses Greene, his wife Louis and son George, in 1871.¹  Moses was primarily a cigar manufacturer, working for H. Pagel, but also worked as a painter and yeast manufacturer sporadically.²  Moses Greene died in 1890 and was survived by his wife Louisa, who continued to live in the house.³  Another relative, G.W. Greene, who worked for G.I. Hagar, was listed at this address in 1881-83.⁴  The Greene family continued to inhabit the house until around 1904.⁵

See house on 1877 Birds-Eye Map