Archive Record
Metadata
Catalog Number |
PH 2009.19 |
Title |
John McLaren Enman Glass Negatives Collection |
Collection |
Photograph Collection |
Object Name |
Print, Photographic |
Date |
c. 1900 |
Scope & Content |
A set of 61 glass negatives found in the attic of 242 Highland Ave. was donated to the Archival Center in 2009. Four prints were included with the negatives. High resolution scans were made of 18 negatives and subsequently printed. Several others have also been scanned. The negatives were all originally unidentified, but the structures in several of the images have since been identified. Since the negatives were found in the former home of John McLaren Enman, it is assumed they belonged to him and that members of his family are pictured in some of them. Other people may be relations or neighbors. Identified buildings include 242 Highland Ave. and its barn, houses on Cliff Street, the Calumet Club, Highland Bethany Chapel, Pumping Station at the North Reservoir, Washington School, and the state fish hatchery. |
Admin/Biographical History |
John McClaren Enman was born in 1843 in Prince Edward Island and died in 1919 in Winchester. A professional builder, he arrived in Winchester about 1892 and built his own house, 130 Highland Ave., renumbered as 242. He also built 182 Highland, 64 Church St., ten houses for Samuel Twombly, the Calumet Club house, Episcopal Church on Mt. Vernon Street, Samuel Elder house, as well as buildings outside Winchester. He was associated in the building of the pumping plant at the North Reservoir in 1898. He or his firm submitted the low bid in 1916 for the parkway bandstand and in 1917 was the contractor for the Robert Coit house on Forest Street built for Franklin E. Gregory (originally #180 Forest St.). John and Isabella (Galbraith) Enman were the parents of two children, Frank Henry (1876-1940) and Elsie Bell (1884-1973). Both were life-long residents. In 1927, Frank married Helen Lothrop Cabot (1892-1982). He continued to live in his father's house and carried on his father's business as a building contractor. He was a member of the Board of Assessors 1924-1940 and of the Winchester Rotary Club. Elsie married Dr. Mott Alvah Cummings (1862-1929) in 1927 and George R. Ferguson in 1933. Elsie lived with Frank during her widowhood and at 232 Highland Ave. after marrying Ferguson. Helen left Highland Avenue to live at 2 Elmwood Ave. in 1943. Neither Frank nor Elsie had children. Since John Enman was one of 19 children born to his father David and his two wives, and his wife Isabelle was one of 10 children, it is quite possible that some of the unidentified photographs are of relatives. The State Fish Hatchery, Winchester (Middlesex Fells), was built in 1898 and remained in use through 1912. It was then used as a maintenance building1913-1926. In 1926 the MDC leased the building to the Boy Scouts of America (local council) and sold it to the Fellsland Council in 1955. In 1964, the BSA (local council) returned the building/land to MDC, per the 1954 sale agreement. In 1968, the MDC sold the building/land to a private owner (566 South Border Road). The Pumping Station at the North Reservoir was built by Maurice Carroll of Woburn in association with Enman in 1898. The building was later used as an auxiliary fire station. Enman received a contract to build the Calumet Club at 15 Dix Street overlooking Wedge Pond in 1892. The building was sold in 1938 and remodeled about a year later by Alfred D. Elliott into a professional office building. It was demolished in 2016. The Highland Bethany Society Chapel opened in 1887 and was in use until the group, reorganized in 1906 as the second Congregational Church, built a stone structure on Washington Street in 1926. It was located near the Washington School built in 1851. |
Copyrights |
Permission to publish material from this collection is subject to approval by the Town of Winchester. |
Finding Aids |
A finding aid with detailed information about the contents of the collection is available. Contact the Archives for a copy. |
Subjects |
Houses Barns |
Search Terms |
Highland Avenue Cliff Street |
People |
Enman, John McLaren Enman, Isabella Enman, Frank Enman, Elsie |
Containers |
242 Highland Avenue - House, barn, lawn 242 Highland Avenue & Neighboring Buildings Buildings Unidentified People Enman Prints |