National Register of Historic Places

Hamblen Development Historic District

Portland, Cumberland County, Maine
Listed
June 17, 1992
Type
District
Period
Listed
Ref No.
92000802

About this property

The Hamblen Development Historic District encompasses a modest collection of Greek Revival residential properties at 188–208 Danforth Street in Portland, Maine. They were built in 1835–36 as a speculative venture by members of the Hamblen family, and are a rare surviving cluster of development in the city from this period. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992. The Hamblen Development occupies the south side of one block of Danforth Street, on the east side of Portland's West End, between Brackett and Clark Streets. The eastern half of the block is occupied by the Hamblen Block (188–194), a series of four three-story brick rowhouses built in 1835. To its west stands a brick duplex (196–198), also three stories in brick, set in a mirror-image layout, that was built in 1836. Also built in 1836 was 200 Danforth, a free-standing single family house that is three bays wide, like the duplex and rowhouse units are. At the end of the block stands another duplex (206–208); this building has a more elaborate roof treatment, with a modillioned cornice, and the left-hand unit has a few rare surviving period wrought iron grills. This series of buildings were built as a speculative real estate development by brothers Eli, Joseph, and Nathaniel Hamblen. It is one of the earliest known examples of this sort of a focused development venture in the state, where they did not even begin until the early 1830s. The development was part of a significant push to develop the area west of the city's main port facilities. National Register of Historic Places listings in Portland, Maine

Location

188--208 Danforth St.
Portland, Cumberland County, Maine
43.64846, -70.26337

Categories

COMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENTARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Hamblen Block
Industrial
0 mi
Dyer, Nathaniel, House
Industrial
0.2 mi
Ingraham, Joseph Holt, House
Industrial
0.2 mi
Park Street Row
Industrial
0.2 mi
Minott, William, House
Industrial
0.2 mi

Nearby Battles

Queen Anne's War – Raid on Casco ME 1703
1703Colonial
0.8 mi
Raid on Falmouth (Casco, Maine) 1690
1690Colonial
0.8 mi

Questions about this property

When was Hamblen Development Historic District listed on the National Register?

Hamblen Development Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 17, 1992.

What type of historic resource is Hamblen Development Historic District?

Hamblen Development Historic District is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Hamblen Development Historic District?

The period of significance for Hamblen Development Historic District is recorded as the listed era.

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