Significant figures
Analyzing the maps published by G.W. Bromley in the Atlas of the City of Boston throughout the years 1880-1930 provides data about the landowners of each marked building. Although the fact that someone owned property on Hudson Street does not mean they necessarily lived there, the people in question were still connected to the development of the neighborhood.
Photograph of Anna C. Brackett (undated), American National Biography
ANNA C. BRACKETT
Anna Callendar Brackett was the eldest child of Samuel Eaton and Caroline S. (Callendar) Brackett. Born May 21, 1836, Brackett attended Boston-area private schools, as the family lived in nearby Somerville. She is remembered today for being an outspoken feminist voice in the nineteenth century, in addition to an educator, philosopher, and translator.
Bromley, Atlas of the City of Boston: 1888 (top), 1898 (bottom)
Anna's father, Samuel Brackett, is listed to have owned the 1234 sq ft property of 70 Hudson Street from sometime before 1883, to sometime between 1890-1895. After that, there are various owners until Anna herself is listed as the property owner in 1898, until her death in 1911. The 1850 Census yielded more information about the Brackett family and house residents. In addition to Samuel and his wife Caroline, there were 5 children, and an 18-year-old girl named Bridgett Crofty of Ireland living in the family's house. Samuel is listed as a merchant of dry goods, with a real estate value of $2500. At the time of the census, Anna was listed to be only 14 years old, born in Massachusetts, and currently attending school.
Screenshot from the 1850 US Census
Two articles written by Brackett in The Boston Daily Globe. "The Young Housekeeper," November 13, 1892
The Boston Daily Globe, "Women's Queerness," July 24, 1893
In 1863, Anna became the first female school principal at a secondary school in St. Louis, MO. She worked to ensure equal educational opportunities for all women and girls. After resigning from this position in the 1870s, she relocated to New York. There, she published her most famous essay, The Education of American Girls, and opened a school in Brooklyn called The Brackett School for Girls. After finally retiring from teaching, Brackett focused on writing and published multiple feminist pieces in The Boston Daily Globe, though it's not clear if she ever returned to Boston in the latter part of her life. As she died in New Jersey, it is likely that her ownership of the property 70 Hudson Street was, like her father's, for the purpose of subletting to renters.
HAKAR AND HAWAH
In researching the Syrian Orthodoxy and how the religion played a part in the development of Hudson Street, I could confirm that two of Hudson Street's residents were among those who formed the First Committee of the Saint John's Society in Boston. Both Fadlo Hakar and Michael Hawah are cited by the Saint John of Damascus Church to have been "loyal and devoted individuals who possessed a deep and determined desire to keep alive the spirit of Orthodoxy, which was so deeply a part of their life and culture." (Saint John of Damascus Church). According to the 1912 census, Hakar was a 40 year old Turkish man who had immigrated in 1899. He owns a dry goods storefront that is located on the bottom floor of his property, 92 Hudson. In his household are listed his wife Selma, daughters Alexandra and Mary, and mother Rose, who are all listed to have immigrated soon after him, in 1901.
Hawah owned the property of 74 Hudson Street, and, at the time of the 1920 Census, his family was one of four that lived in the dwelling. Additionally, he worked in manufacturing, though it is not clear where exactly he worked, though he is listed as the Employer. In 1920, Hawah was 60 years old and married to his wife, Tomily. They both are documented to have immigrated from Syria in 1903.
Bromley, Atlas of the City of Boston, 1912
References
Brackett, Anna C. "THE YOUNG HOUSEKEEPER.: HOW SHALL SHE KEEP HER MIND FRESH AND BRIGHT?--SHE NEEDS FIFTEEN MINUTES A DAY OF ABSOLUTE SOLITUDE." Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922), Nov 13 1892, p. 28. ProQuest.
Brackett Anna C. "WOMEN'S QUEERNESS:." Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922), Jul 24 1893, p. 3. ProQuest.
“History of Our Parish.” On the Road to Hudson Street, St. John of Damascus Church, 15 Dec. 2018, stjohnd.org/history/.
Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library. Philadelphia : G.W. Bromley & Co. 1888. Atlas of the City of Boston via Atlascope.
Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library. Philadelphia : G.W. Bromley & Co. 1898. Atlas of the City of Boston via Atlascope.
Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library. Philadelphia : G.W. Bromley & Co. 1912. Atlas of the City of Boston via Atlascope.
Lloyd, Susan M. "Brackett, Anna Callender (1836-1911), educator." American National Biography. 1 Feb. 2000. https://www.anb.org/view/10.1093/anb/9780198606697.001.0001/anb-9780198606697-e-0900107
Year: 1850; Census Place: Somerville, Middlesex, Massachusetts; Roll: 324; Page: 373
Year: 1910; Census Place: Boston Ward 7, Suffolk, Massachusetts; Roll: T624_616; Page: 17A
Year: 1920; Census Place: Boston Ward 5, Suffolk, Massachusetts; Roll: T625_731; Page: 7A;