Upstate

A Downtown Hudson Manse in Need of a Polish, Yours for $565K

Perhaps a diamond in the rough meant for an old house lover, this Hudson, N.Y., home for sale may need some TLC but it has a spot on the scenic stretch of Willard Place, a street designed as a residential enclave in the early 1870s.

by Susan De Vries

07/09/2021 0

Within walking distance of the Columbia County town’s main shopping and dining district on Warren Street, the house on the market at 6 Willard Place sits within the locally designated Willard Place Neighborhood Historic District.

The little development of Willard Place was made possible in 1872 with the sale of the former Willard property at the corner of 3rd and Allen streets. The developer, William I. Traver & Son, announced plans for a refined residential enclave with a circular carriageway, park and sidewalks on the new street. The houses, the Hudson Daily Star reported in April of that year, would have a splendid view of the Catskill Mountains and would be “neat and attractive in appearance” and would surely be bought by “responsible and respectable parties.”

a map from 1873 showing the street — The street in 1873. Map by D. G Beers & Co. via New York Public Library

Construction started that year and by 1874 several houses were already completed, with more on the way. A map of 1873 shows the name “W. Peck” on the lot for No. 6 and city directories and census records show Willard and Mary Peck in residence by 1875. The name of the street and Mr. Peck’s first name being the same seems to be a coincidence, although perhaps it was an added incentive to make a family home here.

A total of eight houses were originally built on the private street between 1872 and 1892. Of those homes, 1 and 2 Willard Place were demolished in the 20th century and 5 Willard, also currently on the market, was dramatically altered in 1941 after a fire claimed its upper stories.

Census records from the 1870s to 1900 show multiple lawyers were among the early residents of Willard Place, including Willard Peck. Listed in directories as a lawyer and a real estate agent, Peck would have had an easy stroll to his office on Warren Street.

An early 20th century postcard of Willard Place in the moonlight. Image via The City of Hudson Postcards Collection, Hudson Area Library, New York Heritage Digital Collections

Like the other households on the street, the Peck home was kept running with the help of live-in servants. The 1875 census shows the couple in residence with an infant son and two female servants, both born in Ireland. The Peck family would eventually include two sons and a daughter, with live-in servants appearing on the census with the family through 1920. The house seems to have stayed in the family’s hands at least until the deaths of William in 1924 and Mary the following year.

While the house isn’t looking as fresh as it was the day the Pecks moved in, there are still plenty of original details they would recognize both inside and out. On the exterior, the frame house may not have the exuberance of its Second Empire-style neighbor at 4 Willard Place but there are still some picturesque elements, including an angled bay, an oriel window with a bit of cresting, a portico with Corinthian columns, and some intriguing looking ornamental details on the stoop and the side porch.

The listing is up front about the need for a “visionary buyer with deep pockets” but someone with an eye for historic properties would likely see the potential here. On the interior are marble mantels, built-ins and the original stair with a newel post.

With roughly 3,100 square feet of space, the house has five bedrooms and three bathrooms. The listing photos show a mix of wood floors as well as some carpeting and linoleum — hopefully with the wood floors in fine shape underneath.

On the first floor are the expected parlor and dining room. The parlor has a Colonial Revival style mantel while in the dining room is a marble mantel in keeping with the 1870s era of the house.

The original kitchen would have been on the lower level and the listing makes an intriguing mention of it but a modern kitchen was inserted on the first floor at some point. There’s no photo but it is described as needing a total overhaul.

There are black marble mantels in at least two of the bedrooms upstairs. On the third floor, the low-ceilinged rooms were likely once home to the live-in servants.

Dubbed the “Sleeping Beauty of Willard Place” in the listing, the property is priced at $565,000 and listed with Sarah H. Sterling and James T. Male of House Hudson Valley Realty.