90 Summer Street (House), Pittsfield, Berkshire County, MA

Significance: The area surrounding the house at 90 Summer Street is significant as a planned subdivision originally laid out on the Childs Farm between 1854 and 1862 and developed over the next half-century. The Italianate Style dwelling (1864-65) is representative of the nineteenth-century structures in this neighborhood of single and multiple family residences. The house is architecturally significant for its unusual Queen Anne Revival Style porch. Historically, the house is significant for its association with the local furniture industry. Members of the Lawton and Yon families who sold furniture on North Street resided here as did neighbor Stephen T. Whipple. Another resident of the property, Jennette B. Hayes, milliner, operated an early woman-run business in Pittsfield's Academy of Music Block. Alterations and demolitions reflect the neighborhood's decline, but significant structures remain at 108 and 124 Summer Street and the Octagon House is nearby at 58 Union Street.
Survey number: HABS MA-1302
Building/structure dates: 1864-1865 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: before 1884 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: ca. 1889- ca. 1895 Subsequent Work