Commander’s Mansion, Talcott Avenue

In 1816 Captain George Talcott selected this location for the Watertown Arsenal because it was inland, but still accessible by ship since the Charles River had not yet been dammed.  In 1964 when it was closed as a U.S. Army Arsenal, the Watertown Arsenal was believed to be the second oldest arsenal in the United States.  The initial site consisted of 20 acres of land, which was expanded over time to include 130 acres and employ about 10,000 people at its peak.  The original quadrangle of 13 brick buildings was designed by Alexander Parris, who also designed Quincy Market and the Parker House in Boston. 

The Commander’s mansion was built in 1865 by Major Thomas J. Rodman for $65,000 (over $700,000 today), an enormous amount of money for that time.  Major Rodman was taken to task by the U.S. government for his extravagant spending of taxpayer’s money and transferred to Rock Island, Illinois, never to spend one night in his new home.  With 27 rooms, 11 marble fireplaces, and 13 foot high ceilings, the house is sited on 7 acres of land.  The house interior has elaborate bas relief, plaster trim moldings and ceiling medallions, as well as floors of mahogany, birch, butternut, black walnut, cedar and oak.  In 1908, the grounds were landscaped by Fredrick Law Olmsted’s firm, who also designed Boston’s Emerald Necklace and New York’s Central Park.  The Mansion was occupied by various commanders succeeding Rodman until the 1980’s; it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in January of 1976.  It is currently available for rental for events.  More information may be found at the web site http://www.commandersmansion.com/.

 the Edmund Fowle House

The Edmund Fowle House, built in 1772 , is the second oldest surviving house in Watertown. During the British occupation of Boston in the American Revolution, Watertown was the seat of Massachusetts government. Committees of the 2nd and 3rd Provincial Congress met in this house from April 22 to July 19, 1775, and the Executive Council of the Provincial Congress met here from July 19, 1775 to November, 1776.  Well known visitors to the house from this period include Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, George Washington, Paul Revere, John Hancock, and Sam Adams.

In 1776 the Treaty of Watertown was signed in this house, the first treaty signed between the newly formed United States of America and a foreign power (the St. John’s and Mi'kmaq Tribes of Native Americans). This treaty was created as a result of General Washington’s desire to secure our northern borders from the British. At this time, the Executive Council was meeting in the Fowle House. The 28 member Executive Council acted in place of the Governor and Lt. Governor up until the adoption of the Constitution in 1780.

The Historical Society of Watertown has recently been awarded 2 grants from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for the restoration of the Edmund Fowle House.  Most of the inside of the house will be restored to the 1775 period. The outside will be restored to the 1871 period.  Additional information may be obtained through the Historical Society of Watertown's website, http://www.HistoricWatertown.org

   Founder’s Monument, Charles River Road

George Frederick Robinson raised thirty thousand dollars for the creation of this monument, depicting Sir Richard Saltonstall in colonial dress and decorated with bas-reliefs of Clap’s Landing and the anti-tax protest of 1632. Designed by Henry Hudson Kitson,the sculpture is nine feet tall, cast in bronze and stands on massive granite slabs.

G. Fred, as he was called, was born in 1860. He was known and acknowledged as the town historian and served as a Town Meeting Member for 65 years. He worked hard for the beautification of the riverbanks along the Charles. He also served as President of the Historical Society of Watertown from 1930 to 1949.

    Roger Clap Landing Site

The Mary & John was one of the first about a dozen shiploads of immigrants that arrived in Massachusetts Bay the summer of 1630. Left by the captain “in a forlorn place” at Nantasket Point in June, the company sent a party of “ten men well armed” – including twenty-one year old Roger Clap – under the command of Captain Richard Southcot to find a place to settle.

Years later, Clap wrote how the men “went up the Charles River, until the river grew narrow and shallow, and there we landed our goods with much labor and toil, the bank being steep.” That evening they learned that “three hundred Indians” were camped nearby. “In the morning, some of the Indians came and stood at a distance off, looking at us, but came not near us. But when they had been a while in view, some of them came and held out a great bass towards us; so we sent a man with a biscuit, and changed the cake for the bass. Afterwards, they supplied us with bass, exchanging a bass for a biscuit cake, and were very friendly unto us.”

These Englishmen and the others from the Mary & John soon settled Dorchester, but Watertown architect Charles Brigham depicted the friendly encounter on his design for Watertown’s town seal. The Perkins School for the Blind across the street from the stone marker is located at the site that Clapp referred to as the steep bank.