Ask the Seller, 93 Monument Street, Concord, MA

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in some of LandVests properties? We invite our owners to tell us a bit about their experience, what they love about their homes and a bit of their history. We spoke with the owners of 93 Monument Street, to talk about their property, a home they had admired for years and eventually made their own.

We purchased our property in 1984. The day we heard that our offer had been accepted, we were celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary and staying at the Ritz in Boston. Our good friend Jane Barrett called us that evening with the news. We were thrilled!

We had lived in Concord for 23 years previously on Middle Street raising our three kids in the Alcott school district, and just fell in love with what Concord was all about.   In our many years of walking by the North Bridge, the Old Manse, Patriot's Day parades, etc. we always looked so fondly at 93 Monument which we found had been owned by the same family since the early thirties; Pauline and Charles Ward. Mr. Ward was a teacher at the Fenn School and very much a handyman who personally took care of the property, although the back yard when we bought the property was only a fraction of what it is now.   Our friends also knew that we just loved the place. One day Linda's partner at The Toy Shop called her and mentioned that there was a garage sale at "our house". Immediately Linda got on the phone to find out if, by chance, it was for sale. It WAS. We had never been inside the home before but what was so intriguing to us was the antiquity and lovely architecture of the house plus the huge bonus of a large lawn potential and a fairly good size barn practically in the center of town.

Once we were able to go inside we just fell in love more so. The tall ceiling-to-floor windows in the parlor and dining room were most handsome. A Rumford fireplace with a beehive oven in the living room (we had lined) and some floors that had a lovely bend to them. We also liked the little rectangular window in the kitchen door so that the "help" could see if the dining room guests needed attention. One other attention getter was the beautiful birch tree in the back yard.

There were certainly things to do to take care of some of the aging process. We found a contractor who loved old houses and identified several areas that needed attention. Some were obvious and a few surprises as well. Some major projects included, replacing the front porch columns and floor joists and installing storm windows throughout, cutting the field in the back, which started at the back of the birch tree and established a lovely lawn with additional plantings. We also remodeled the kitchen using new cabinets and Formica countertops. As a result of a minor stove fire, we later replaced the counters with soapstone which we love.

There are several physical features of the property that have especially appealed to us over the years: Front row seats to the Patriots Day Parade, they are the best, a rite of spring. Floor-to-ceiling front porch windows. Barn; not too many antique working barns left this close to town. As the house is situated on a slight slope, one has the feeling in the rear of the house that you are elevated a floor and obviously the second floor gives the illusion of being another floor elevated. In the back yard, one has the ability to look at four sizable lots without any structures, except a small shed.

We hope that the next owner of our property will have as much fun and enjoyment as we have had. It is a special place.

 

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For more information on 93 Concord Street, Concord, please visit the listing page or the individual property website, or contact listing brokersJ. Stanley Edwards, jsedwards@landvest.com, Stewart Young, syoung@landvest.com., or G. Wade Staniar, wstaniar@landvest.com.