Laura Richards House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Laura Richards House
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 Location in Maine
Location in the United States
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| Location | 3 Dennis St., Gardiner, Maine |
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| Area | 0.5 acres (0.20 ha) |
| Built | 1810 |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| NRHP reference No. | 79000151 |
| Added to NRHP | June 14, 1979 |
The Laura Richards House is a special old home located at 3 Dennis Street in Gardiner, Maine. It was built around 1810. This house is a great example of the Federal style of architecture from that time. It is most famous because it was the home of Laura E. Richards. She was a very talented writer who won a Pulitzer Prize. She wrote many of her books while living here. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. This means it is an important historical building.
About the Laura Richards House
The Laura Richards House is in a neighborhood just south of downtown Gardiner. It stands at the corner of Dennis and School Streets. This house is two-and-a-half stories tall and made of wood. It has a sloped roof and chimneys inside its walls. The outside is covered with flat wooden boards called clapboards. It also has a fancy trim under the roof.
The front of the house faces Dennis Street. It has five window sections across the front. The main front door is in the middle. It has tall, narrow windows on each side. Above the door is a half-circle window with a decorative frame. Inside, the house has a common layout for its time. There is a central hallway with rooms on either side. A smaller, one-and-a-half story section is attached to the back. This part connects the house to an old carriage barn.
History of the House and Its Famous Owner
The house was built around 1810 by a man named Ebenezer Byram. He bought the land from Robert Hallowell Gardiner. In 1878, the house was bought by Henry and Laura E. Richards. Laura Richards (1850-1943) came from a very famous family. Her mother was Julia Ward Howe, who wrote "The Battle Hymn of the Republic." Her father was Samuel Gridley Howe, a well-known doctor and educator. Henry Richards, Laura's husband, was also the grandson of Robert Hallowell Gardiner.
The couple moved to Gardiner in 1876. They had faced some tough financial times. It was around this period that Laura Richards started her writing career. She became very well known for her many children's books. She also shared the first-ever Pulitzer Prize for writing. She won it for a biography she wrote about her mother.
