Quincy, Mass. Historical and Architectural Survey

389 Quincy Shore Drive

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
The Atlantic neighborhood in North Quincy is bordered by the Neponset River to the North Quincy Bay to the East. It was once part of Dorchester and with the Old North Precinct that had split off from Braintree, became part of the Town of Quincy in 1792. The Jockey Club of Boston set up the first mile track course in the state in 1812 in a section of Atlantic known as Billings Plains and less than one hundred years later the track was filled in with new homes. Like its neighbors, Montclair and Wollaston, most of the community of Atlantic was built in the first third of the 20th century. From colonial times until the Civil War North Quincy was referred to as "The Farms" and it was the large Newbury, Wilson, Billings and Glover farms that were split up for residences by real estate developers David H. MacKay, Henry Hunt, Maurice E. Kilpatrick, John E. Poland, Henry J. Grass and Charles M. Conant, Henry Blackwell, and Walter Webb. The development process was greatly accelerated by the Old Colony Railroad which began operations in 1845, eventually establishing stations in Atlantic, Norfolk Downs (the southern section of Atlantic), and Wollaston as well as by the advent of Quincy's extensive street railway system.

This prominently sited house was built by William H. Sullivan probably at just about the completion time of Quincy Shore Drive, then named Metropolitan Boulevard, in the late 1910's. It is sited on an unusually large lot, which includes the one in the rear at 74-76 Ocean Avenue. In 1907 the land for 389 Quincy Shore Drive was still part of a very large tract which was bordered by Ocean Avenue, Quincy Shore Drive, and East Squantum Street which was almost entirely owned by Catharine C. and Alice Pope.

BIBLIOGRAPHY and/or REFERENCES
Assessors Records.
Quincy City Atlases and Directories.
H. Hobart Holly, Quincy Historical Society.
H. Hobart Holly, ed. Quincy: 350 Years, 1974, p. 4.
Metropolitan District Commission records.
William S. Patte. A History of Old Braintree and Quincy, 1878, p. 55.
John Ramsdell. "Historic North Quincy". ["Written about 1934"]. Typed manuscript at Quincy Historical Society.

ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE:
The "Prairie Bungalow" Style, a Cambridge Historical Commission label describes residences built in the early 20th century which espouses elements from both the California based Bungalow Style and the Middle West based Prairie Style. Architects of both styles sought to escape from the historicism of the past and the emphasis on classicism; there were interested in building simpler and more functional houses which also reflected the climatic conditions of their respective areas. The California Bungalow is characterized by a low pitched gable roof with a shed dormer and covered veranda while the Prairie type house has a predominantly horizontal appearance which relates to the rolling prairies. Materials used include stucco, contrasted with dark wood trim, cobblestones for foundations and chimneys and wood left in its natural state.

There are two Prairie-Bungalow residences with a Mediterranean twist in the Atlantic area: 87 Conant Road and this residence at 389 Quincy Shore Drive. Beautifull sited overlooking Quincy Bay, this house is a fine bungalow residence with Californian and Iberian influences. The two most dominant and unusual features of this house, not common to Quincy, are the red tile roof and the arcade fronting the house which gives the house its Mediterranean flavor. The fenestration is irregular with arched, square, casement and sash windows combined to create a picturesque effect. The stucco wall covering is an appropriate wall covering for an ocean-side villa. It is a fine and picturesque component in the Quincy Shore Drive streetscape.

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