30 Commonwealth Avenue
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30 Commonwealth Avenue was designed by Gridley Bryant and Arthur Gilman, architects, and built ca. 1861, one of nine contiguous houses (20-22-24-26-28-30-32-34-36 Commonwealth). In his Houses of Boston’s Back Bay, Bainbridge Bunting calls the group “one of the most imposing compositions in the whole district.” 30 Commonwealth was built as the home of builder and contractor Jonas Fitch and his wife Catherine (Blodgett) Fitch. In 1862, they had lived at 13 Edinburgh. He is shown as the owner of 30 Commonwealth on the 1874 Bromley map. They also maintained a home in Pepperell, Massachusetts. Their son-in-law and daughter, John Wallace and Ann (Fitch) Wallace, lived with them. He was a boot and shoe merchant in the 1870s, a dry goods merchant by 1880, and a real estate broker by 1885. Jonas Fitch died in February of 1882. The Heirs of Jonas Fitch are shown as the owners of 30 Commonwealth on the 1883 and 1888 Bromley maps. Catherine Fitch and the Wallaces continued to live at 30 Commonwealth until her death in March of 1892. By 1894, 30 Commonwealth was the home of Henry Parkman and his wife Mary Frances (Parker) Parkman. He is shown as the owner on the 1908 and 1917 Bromley maps. Henry Parkman was an attorney and served first as treasurer and then president of the Provident Institution for Savings. He died in 1924. Frances Parkman continued to live at 30 Commonwealth in 1937, and probably later. She also maintained a summer home in Northeast Harbor, Maine. The 1938 Bromley Atlas shows the heirs of Henry Parkman as the owners of this house. By 1945, 30 Commonwealth was owned by Ellwood and Eva Allen. In April of 1945, they converted the house into six apartments. In April of 1979, Lili Banani, trustee of the Moshiri Company Trust, purchased 30 Commonwealth from Eva Allen. She converted the house into four apartments and, in August of 1979, she converted the apartments into four condominiums. |
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