The F. L. Ames Gardener's Cottage is a small residential house in North

Easton, Massachusetts Easton is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 25,058 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Greater Boston area. Easton is governed by an elected Select Board. Open Town Meeting acts as the legislative br ...

. This building was designed in 1884 by noted American architect

Henry Hobson Richardson Henry Hobson Richardson, FAIA (September 29, 1838 – April 27, 1886) was an American architect, best known for his work in a style that became known as Richardsonian Romanesque. Along with Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, Richardson is one ...

and built the following year. This building sits on the original Ames estate and was designed soon after the neighboring

Ames Gate Lodge The Ames Gate Lodge is a celebrated work by American architect Henry Hobson Richardson. It is privately owned on an estate landscaped by Frederick Law Olmsted, but its north facade can be seen from the road at 135 Elm Street, North Easton, Massach ...

(also a Richardson design). Frederick Lothrop Ames also commissioned Richardson to build the nearby Old Colony Railroad Station. Two other notable buildings in North Easton, the

Ames Free Library The Ames Free Library is a public library designed by noted American architect H. H. Richardson. It is located at 53 Main Street, Easton, Massachusetts, immediately adjacent to another Richardson building, Oakes Ames Memorial Hall. In 2016 the ...

and

Oakes Ames Memorial Hall Oakes Ames Memorial Hall is a historic hall designed by noted American architect H. H. Richardson, with landscaping by Frederick Law Olmsted. It is located on Main Street in the village of North Easton in Easton, Massachusetts, immediately adjace ...

, were also Richardson designs and commissioned by the

Ames family The Ames family is one of the oldest and most illustrious families of the United States. The family's branches are descended from John Ames, the son of a 17th-century settler of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, and numerous public and private wo ...

. The exterior of the Gardener's house has been renovated and is not easily identified as a Richardson building. However the footprint and structure remain intact, including a circular tower on one corner of the house. The ivy-covered walls, long associated with this building, were removed during the renovation.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts 1885 establishments in Massachusetts Butler–Ames family Henry Hobson Richardson buildings Historic district contributing properties in Massachusetts Houses completed in 1885 Houses in Bristol County, Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Bristol County, Massachusetts Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in Massachusetts Easton, Massachusetts

See also

References