Christopher Dodge House History

Christopher G. Dodge House 1858: Built on a knoll, one story above street level, this imposing 4-story Italianate house has a 3-bay facade, a bracketed cornice, and wide eaves. The center entrance, flanked by bay windows on the first floor, is reached by twin stone staircases with fine, wrought-iron balustrades. The carriage house, now heavily altered, still stands at 95 Holden Street. Dodge, the owner of a dye works, bought the land in 1853 from the Holden Estate and moved his family into their new home upon its completion five years later. The house remained in the family until the last years of the 19th century, but by 1901 it had been converted into a rooming house.

Christopher Gore Dodge and his wife Charlotte D. Dodge lived here with their children. Four daughters Charlotte R. Dodge, Ida E. Dodge (Burr), Mary E. Dodge (Slocum), and Sarah A. Dodge, as well as a son, Walter C. Dodge.

Christopher G. Dodge: b. 30 November 1809 in Concord MA.; d. in Providence RI. 28 March 1888.

Providence Preservation Society: Records of Plat 4, Lot 122, 11 West Park Street; Built by Christopher G. Dodge in 1858.

1853  – Christopher G. Dodge, a dyer working out of 156 Westminster Street and
living at 8 Worcester Street buys property on Smith Hill from Thomas R.
Holden for $1,800; the property is described in the deed as “Two certain Lots
of Land both situated on Smith Hill in the Northerly part of said City of
Providence, & are laid-out & described as lots Numbers (35) … & (36) …, on
the Plat of the Holden Estate, surveyed & platted Nov. 1850 by Cushing &
Farnum & recorded in the Land Records of said City of Providence in Book of
Plats No. 4 page 3. Said Lot measures One Hundred & one feet & four & a
half inches on Holden Street, Thirty five feet & a half inch on Lot No. 34 on
said Plat and sixty four feet on Elizabeth Street now West Park Street. Said
Lot No. 36 measures Fifty feet on Elizabeth Street & holding that width
extends back from said Elizabeth Street, about Ninety seven feet to Lots 33 &
34 on said Plat” (Deed Book 132.481).

1854 – Tax records show no building standing on the property purchased by Dodge
the previous year (Tax Ledger A1.254).

1859 – City of Providence directory lists Dodge at this address.

1867 – For the first time tax records show a building valued at $10,000 standing on
the property (Tax Ledger B2.93).

1875 – Christopher G. Dodge quitclaims all rights and interests to the property favor
of Sarah A. Dodge (Deed Book 251.5).

1875 – Christopher and Charlotte Dodge contract a $4,000 mortgage with Citizens’
Savings Bank (Real Estate Mortgage Book 76.309).

1877 – Citizens’ Savings Bank assigns to Henry G. Tucker title and interest to the
property for the sum of $4,000 (Real Estate Mortgage Book 81.538).

1886 – Herbert E. Dodge buys the property at a public auction from Henry G. Tucker,
appointed as attorney for Christopher and Charlotte Dodge, after the Dodges
defaulted on mortgage
payments to the Citizens’ Bank (Deed Book 340.165).

1886 – Herbert E. Dodge contracts a $5,000 mortgage with Caroline B. Greene, a
widow living in Brooklyn, N.Y. (Real Estate Mortgage Book 124.315).

1894 – John E. Coyle buys the property for $5,400 from Caroline B. Green, due to
Herbert Dodge’s default on mortgage payments to Caroline Green (Deed Book
386.273).