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The Sanborn maps before and after 1882 provide names of individuals and their heirs who owned the property and buildings within the S. Market Street parcel. After further research of the names listed, the landowners in the area consist of mayors, bankers, merchants, and politicians who have the means to purchase valuable spaces in Boston’s North Financial District. Most of the individuals and heirs are absentee landowners who do not reside in the market street building but instead own the building to lease it to mercantile businesses. Yet, there are a few who own the building their commercial business inhabits. Like the absentee landowners, the landowners who also perform a business in the specific building reside in an elite neighborhood – further emphasizing the fact that wealthy individuals and families purchased parcels in the popular Boston areas to enhance their wealth.
JOSIAH QUINCY & HEIRS
Owning the largest section within the South Market Street parcel, “Josiah Quincy and Heirs” provides an example of a historically wealthy family who influenced the City of Boston and invested in the South Market area[1].
Portrait of Josiah Quincy III.
Parker, Warren S. "Josiah Quincy III Mayor of Boston." Photograph. 1870. Digital Commonwealth
Statue of Josiah Quincy III in front of the City Hall.
Stebbins, N. L. (Nathaniel Livermore). "Josiah Quincy statue, Old City Hall, School St., Boston." Photograph. 1904. Digital Commonwealth
JOSIAH QUINCY III
Most recognizable to the family name, Josiah Quincy III was the second mayor of Boston and held office from 1823-27[2]. During his time as mayor, Josiah Quincy III conducted the first thorough street cleaning in two years and introduced water and sewage systems to the city streets[3]. The street cleaning decreased crime rates, and his involvement in developing fire hoses for firehouses and vehicles reduced fire risks within the city[4]. Yet, Josiah Quincy was known for much more than decreasing rates of crime and fire. Completed in 1826, Josiah Quincy III was one of the main developers of Boston’s first publicly financed urban-renewal project, Quincy Market (located one block over from the S. Market Street parcel)[5]. Quincy Market, named in his honor, ended congestion at the current public market and brought substantial income to the city[6]. It is unclear when Josiah Quincy purchased the 7 buildings in the South Market parcel, however, it does not come as a surprise that he invested in a profitable area that he generated for the city of Boston.
Furthering research into the “heirs” of Josiah Quincy, the history of the Quincy family expands well before and after Josiah Quincy III. The “illustrious” family name included “three Mayors of Boston, a president of Harvard College, and other notable statesmen and soldiers”[7]. The famous family heritage began in 1633 when Edmund Quincy brought the family name to the New England shores[8]. Josiah Quincy III had seven children – five daughters and two sons[9]. Based on a Boston Globe clipping, the third’s two sons, Josiah IIII and Edmund became executors to the South Market property[10].
Family Feature in the Boston Sunday Post on the Quincy Family. Pictured is the Quincy patriarchal family tree.
Alberth Leman. “The Last of the Quincys.” Boston Sunday Post. Oct. 19, 1919, 47.
CHARLES STREET HOME
The Quincy Family resided on Charles Street, a prominent Boston street that housed the wealthy and prominent Boston families[11]. The family also had an estate and farmhouse in what was then Braintree, MA, but is now known as Quincy, MA[12]. The Charles Street home and the farmhouse estate were passed down from generation to generation.
The Quincy family is just one example of prominent Boston families who invested in profitable Boston areas to support the city and expand their wealth.
The Quincy Family Residence on Charles Street.
“Quincy at Home and at Harvard.” Boston Sunday Globe. Nov. 17, 1895, 25.
Footnotes
[1] “Josiah Quincy.” Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia. 5.
[2] Ibid., 3.
[3] Ibid., 3.
[4] Ibid., 3.
[5] Ibid., 3.
[6] “Josiah Quincy.” Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia. 4.
[7] Alberth Leman. “The Last of the Quincys.” Boston Sunday Post. Oct. 19, 1919, 47.
[8] Ibid., 47.
[9] “Josiah Quincy.” Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia. 2.
[10] “He Comes from a Race of Mayors in Boston.” Boston Sunday Post. Nov. 17, 1895, 19.
[11] “Quincy at Home and at Harvard.” Boston Sunday Globe. Nov. 17, 1895, 25.
[12] “He Comes from a Race of Mayors in Boston.” Boston Sunday Post. Nov. 17, 1895, 19.
wALLACE f. rOBINSON
Drawing of Wallace F. Robinson featured in the Boston Post
“President Robinson an Old Bostonian.” Boston Post. Jan. 16, 1895, 4.
Contrasting from Josiah Quincy and the members of the Quincy Family, Wallace F. Robinson did not come from a wealthy family and accrued his wealth by working his way up through the commercial business. Wallace Robinson owned 93-95 S. Market Street and conducted his commercial business W. F. Robinson & Co from the brick 5-story building. Robinson was born in Vermont and moved to Boston as a boy[13]. As a teenager, he worked for John P. Spire & Co, one of the leading pork manufacturers in the 1800s[14]. Having ample experience within the commercial industry, Robinson started his own company among the provision houses in the Quincy Market area. His firm, W. F. Robinson and Co. stood as a prominent provisions house for 39 years prior to Robinson’s retirement in 1893[15].
Robinson continued to stay active in the Boston community and commercial affairs. He became the president of the Hand Lasting Machine company and served time as a charter member and president of the Boston Produce Exchange[16]. In 1895, Robinson became the president of the Chamber of Commerce – furthering his influence in the Boston community[17].
In addition to providing his time and energy as active presidents of the Produce Exchange and Chamber of Commerce, Robinson gave large contributions to develop additional institutional buildings at Dartmouth college, a Town Hall in his native town in Vermont, and the Jennie M. Robinson Memorial Maternity building to the MA homeopathic hospital (in memory of his wife and mother)[18]. Robinson found pride in his contributions and believed that the buildings would further the success of education, civic planning, and medicine. He continued to make numerous benefactions until his death.
"The continuous applause was given to a man who never had a college education ... that man was Wallace F. Robinson , a business man of this city, who unable to finance his way through Dartmouth, came to Boston to gain a fortune, and, having gained it, has already donated a considerable amount in building up the institution"
Boston Post, January 1913
Feature Article in Boston Post about reaction to Robinson's donation to Dartmouth College.
“900 Dartmouth Sons Cheer Non-Collegian.” Boston Post. Jan. 23, 1913, 4.
Wallace Robinson was an active figure in the mercantile life and “by hard work, forged ahead until he had won a place in the business world and amassed a large fortune”[19]. After amassing his fortune, Robinson purchased a home on 296 Commonwealth Avenue – further illustrating his role as an absentee landowner and involvement in Boston’s elite society[20]. Although stemming from a different background and occupation, Robinson found similar success to the Quincy family and expanded his mercantile knowledge and wealth in the South Market Street parcel.
Footnotes
[13] “President Robinson an Old Bostonian.” Boston Post. Jan. 16, 1895, 4.
[14] Ibid., 4.
[15] Ibid., 4
[16] Ibid., 4.
[17] Ibid., 4
[18] “900 Dartmouth Sons Cheer Non-Collegian.” Boston Post. Jan. 23, 1913, 4.
[19] “Wallace F. Robinson Dead at age of 86.”Boston Daily Globe. Feb 18, 1920, 2.
[20] “President Robinson an Old Bostonian.” Boston Post. Jan. 16, 1895, 4.
thomas dana + Mary (Dana) De Cordova
Similar to Robinson, Thomas Dana was also a well-known merchant and commercial businessman in the Boston area. Interestingly his firm, Thomas Dana & Co, did not sell its wholesale groceries out of the South Market Street location. Instead, his firm was located just a few buildings away at South Market’s cross street, Commercial street[21]. At age thirteen, Dana began his merchant career as a grocery clerk for an old flour firm in Boston[22]. With a salary of $1.50 a week and board, Dana spent his early days in comparative poverty[23].
Acknowledgement about Thomas Dana's company, Thomas Dana & Co. in the Boston Daily Globe.
"Thomas Dana & Co: One of the most noticable of the Old Established Grocery Houses". Boston Daily Globe. Feb. 9, 1885, 3.
Yet, like Robinson, Dana made his name known in the commercial industry very quickly. In 1848 he formed business relations with Mr. G. G. Tarbell and developed the grocery and tea importing house of Tarbell & Dana[24]. After becoming a senior member in 1863, the firm was renamed to Thomas Dana & Co. Dana continued to be an active merchant for nearly half a century and “won respects of his business associated by his unassuming manner and warm-heartedness”[25]. Dana was an esteemed member and friend of the Boston Grocer’s Association, whom labeled him as being a “model merchant” after his death in 1878[26]. Through his honorable dealing Dana became a successful merchant in Boston’s commercial business. Coincidentally, Dana’s home was right down the street from Robinson’s at 311 Commonwealth Ave[27].
After retiring from the commercial business, Dana was a director of Maverick Bank in Boston where he got involved in the “Maverick Bank Case”[28]. Dana and other bank directors were arrested and sent to trial for suspicions of embezzling and misapplying the funds of Maverick Bank[29]. The men were not proven guilty. After said case, Dana renewed his image and business aspirations as a drummer before his early death at age 66[30].
Peculiar blurb in the Newburyport Daily about Dana "beginning life anew as a drummer".
“Thomas Dana on the Road.” Newburyport Daily News. May 18, 1892, 4.
Portrait of Mary Elizabeth Dana de Cordova
“DeCordova History,” The Trustees of Reservations, August 5, 2020,
Mary Elizabeth (Dana) De Cordova + Julian de Cordova
Looking back at the Sanborn maps, Thomas Dana owns the South Market Street building until 1888 when it is transferred to Mary Elizabeth (Dana) de Cordova. It appears that Thomas Dana’s daughter Mary took over the building’s ownership under her married name de Cordova. She married Julian de Cordova, a Jamaican-born tea broker for Thomas Dana & Co[31]. Julian married the boss's daughter, and eventually managed the firm with long-time employee Delano[32]. Growing up with her father’s name and marrying the tea broker of her father’s company, Mary Dana was an affluent daughter and wife within Boston’s elite. Serving as Dana’s only child, she became executor of his properties and carried on his investments in the South Market area[33].
de Cordova Museum and Sculpture Park
Interestingly the de Cordova Museum and sculpture park in Lincoln, MA, was named after the Dana-de Cordova couple and is in fact located on the couple’s estate. Although Julian de Cordova married into an inherently wealthy Dana family, he gained prosperity on his own. According to the museum website, Julian was a “successful tea broker, wholesale merchant, investor, and president of the Union Glass Company in Somerville, Massachusetts”. Art and traveling were the couple’s passions, and after a trip to Spain, the couple remodeled their Lincoln home to look like a European castle. After the death of Mary Elizabeth, Julian allowed visitors to step into the home to view the art collections he and his wife collected during their travels. Planning for his death, Julian “gave his property to the town of Lincoln in 1930 with the stipulation that his estate would become a public museum of art following his death”[34].
Sitting Portrait of Julian de Cordova
“DeCordova History,” The Trustees of Reservations, August 5, 2020,
Footnotes
[21] “Messrs. Thomas Dana & Co., 9 and 11 Commercial Street, Boston, Mass.” Boston Daily Globe. Oct. 15, 1885, 11.
[22] “Thomas Dana & Co. Celebrate their 59th Anniversary with a Banquet to their Salesmen at Parker’s.” Boston Sunday Globe. July 7, 1889, 2.
[23] Ibid., 2.
[24] “Boston Merchant Dead: Thomas Dana of Thomas Dana & Co Succumbs to Disease.” Boston Daily Globe. April 16, 1904, 26.
[25] “Thomas Dana: The Boston Grocers’ Association Passes Resolutions in his Honor and Appoints a Committee to Attend His Funeral.” The Boston Daily Globe. Jan. 17, 1887, 8.
[26] Ibid., 8.
[27] “Boston Merchant Dead: Thomas Dana of Thomas Dana & Co Succumbs to Disease.” Boston Daily Globe. April 16, 1904, 26.
[28] “The Maverick” Warrants Against Three Directors.” Boston Daily Globe. Nov. 3, 1891, 1.
[29] Ibid., 1.
[30] “Thomas Dana on the Road.” Newburyport Daily News. May 18, 1892, 4.
[31] “Mrs. De Cordova Buried.” Boston Sunday Post. Oct. 22, 1922, 16.
[32] “Mary Dana De Cordova Cuts Off Son With $1.” Boston Evening Globe. Oct. 29, 1922, 11,
[33] Ibid., 11.
[34] “DeCordova History,” The Trustees of Reservations, August 5, 2020,
The three prominent men, Quincy, Robinson, and Dana, illustrate the similarities between the people and families who invested in the South Market Street parcel. Whether the individuals came from a historically wealthy family or not, they became successful businessmen within their careers in the mercantile industry. The absentee landowners established family homes in elite neighborhoods away from the popular, congested market, further showcasing their wealth and means to afford more than one building. With the market bringing substantial income to the city, the individuals saw merit in investing in the buildings that surrounded Quincy market, more specifically just one block over on South Market street. The men and their families continued the landownership for more than a decade, highlighting the financial investments by elite individuals made in Boston’s North Financial district and booming commercial industry.
Landowner Bibliography
Quincy:
E. M. N. 2019. “Josiah Quincy.” Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia. https://search-ebscohost-com.holycross.idm.oclc.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ers&AN=88829176&site=eds-live&scope=site.
“He Comes from a Race of Mayors in Boston.” Boston Sunday Post. Nov. 17, 1895, 19.
Leman, Alberth. “The Last of the Quincys.” Boston Sunday Post. Oct. 19, 1919, 47.
Parker, Warren S. "Josiah Quincy III Mayor of Boston." Photograph. 1870. Digital Commonwealth, https://ark.digitalcommonwealth.org/ark:/50959/tm70nm30h (accessed May 07, 2021).
“Quincy at Home and at Harvard.” Boston Sunday Globe. Nov. 17, 1895, 25.
Stebbins, N. L. (Nathaniel Livermore). "Josiah Quincy statue, Old City Hall, School St., Boston." Photograph. 1904. Digital Commonwealth, https://www.digitalcommonwealth.org/search/commonwealth-oai:pn89dv921 (accessed May 07, 2021).
Robinson:
“900 Dartmouth Sons Cheer Non-Collegian.” Boston Post. Jan. 23, 1913, 4.
“President Robinson an Old Bostonian.” Boston Post. Jan. 16, 1895, 4.
“Wallace F. Robinson Dead at age of 86.”Boston Daily Globe. Feb 18, 1920, 2.
Dana/ De Cordova:
“Boston Merchant Dead: Thomas Dana of Thomas Dana & Co Succumbs to Disease.” Boston Daily Globe. April 16, 1904, 26.
“DeCordova History.” The Trustees of Reservations, August 5, 2020. https://live-trustees.pantheonsite.io/content/decordova-history/.
“Mary Dana De Cordova Cuts Off Son With $1.” Boston Evening Globe. Oct. 29, 1922.
“The Maverick” Warrants Against Three Directors.” Boston Daily Globe. Nov. 3, 1891, 1.
“Messrs. Thomas Dana & Co., 9 and 11 Commercial Street, Boston, Mass.” Boston Daily Globe. Oct. 15, 1885, 11.
“Mrs. De Cordova Buried.” Boston Sunday Post. Oct. 22, 1922, 16.
“Thomas Dana on the Road.” Newburyport Daily News. May 18, 1892, 4.
“Thomas Dana: The Boston Grocers’ Association Passes Resolutions in his Honor and Appoints a Committee to Attend His Funeral.” The Boston Daily Globe. Jan. 17, 1887, 8.
“Thomas Dana & Co. Celebrate their 59th Anniversary with a Banquet to their Salesmen at Parker’s.” Boston Sunday Globe. July 7, 1889, 2.
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