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Stearns Lumber Company
A.T. Stearns 75th anniversary medal
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 The Stearns Lumber Company was a huge concern covering approximately 14 acres.

Port Norfolk was pasture land until the 19th century. Then its northern end was developed into a large industrial site housing the Putnam Nail Company and later the George Lawley & Son company, manufacturers of motor yachts.

The southern reaches of Port Norfolk were well situated for commercial purposes as well with since the Port's north, east and southern borders provided access to the Neponset River. The Laban Pratt Lumber Company was located on the river about where the train bridge crosses. The Stearns Lumber Company was a huge concern covering approximately 14 acres just to the east of that. In today?s illustration, the viewer would probably have been hovering in a balloon over the railroad bridge looking east.


Location
Map detail showing Port Norfolk 1910
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 The January 17, 2008, issue of the Dorchester Reporter said that the site may be on it way to becoming a park through the state?s Department of Conservation and Recreation. They also say that much of the site was once marshland, filled in with coal ash in the 1850s.

The neighborhood description filed with the Boston Landmarks Commission says: The Albert T. Stearns Lumber Company, next door to Pratt's company on the north, also has little physical evidence of a once thriving business with the noteworthy exception of the c. mid 19th century Greek Revival brick office structure at 98 Taylor Street. This structure is labeled "office" on the 1910 Atlas. The half dozen Stearns buildings that once stood across Taylor Street have all disappeared although several foundations appear to have survived amidst the underbrush. According to the l869 Taxable Valuation of the Town of Dorchester, Stearns' Taylor Street business encompassed ?an old counting room? (possibly # 98 Taylor Street?), lumber building, two stables, planing mill and counting room, dry-house, moulding room, a block of 5 tenements, a large shed and a wharf. It would seem likely that the currently vacant Stearns site on the water side of Taylor Street would provide fertile ground for archaeologists to yield significant below ground remains of the Stearns Lumber Co. which was thriving well into the 20th century


Neponset Waterfront
Neponset River Water Front
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 Postcard. Caption on front: Neponset River Water Front, Neponset, Mass. Postmarked Jan. 17, 1911. On verso: Published by A. Kagan, Boston. Mass. Printed in Germany.

The company pictured is the A T Stearns Co.

Related Images: showing 8 of 1578 (more results)
Here are some images from the Atheneum archive related to this topic. Click on any of these images to open a slideshow of all 1578 images.
R.G. CrosbyView of the Country towards Dorchester1637 Conjectural map of meadow lands south of Neponset River158 Ashmont Street
53 Ocean Street 4-12-06Roswell Gleason maker's markCora L. Etheridge SchoolThe Chocolate Girl, La Belle Chocolatiere
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Created: April 24, 2011   Modified: April 24, 2011