4 William Street

Architectural Description: 

Colonial Revival - Georgian Revival

Historical Narrative: 

William Street was originally named Warwick Street when Shawsheen Village was laid out. The name was changed by a vote at a special Town Meeting on November 13, 1922 in memory of William M. Wood Jr., son of William M. & Ellen (Ayer) Wood, who died in an automobile accident on Aug. 15, 1922.

This home was built as part of the Shawsheen Village development 1918 – 1924 by William M. Wood, President of the American Woolen Company Wood hired about eight different architects to design the homes and structures for the village. Homes were sold or rented through the Homestead Association who had offices in the Post Office building on the corner of North Main & Poor Streets.

After the death of William M. Wood in Feb. 1926 most of the residential and commercial buildings were then sold. Some were held by the Wood family in the "Arden Trust" and others with the American Woolen Company, which had been deeded the property in December 1920. The AWCo Board of Directors authorized its President, Lionel J. Noah, to deliver all deeds, as deemed necessary to the Textile Realty for sale on Dec. 29, 1931.

The Textile Realty then transferred ownership to the Andover Shawsheen Realty Company on June 30, 1932, holding the mortgage on the properties. T. Edwin Andrew, treasurer, was authorized to sell or rent the properties. With the Great Depression sales were sluggish and many homes were rented until the economy rebounded.

The first occupants of record to lease the home in 1926 were Mrs. Madeline Coggswell and John A., Otis W. both students, and William T. a clerk. In 1928 the home is vacant.

This house was first sold to Bartley J. & Hannah H. Higgins of North Hampton, MA on Dec. 29, 1933. Higgins owned just four years then returned to North Hampton.

John T. Batal purchased the property on June 9, 1937. John T. Batal b. 1896 was a Physician in Lawrence, MA. John and wife Mary b. 1897 owned the home for 39 years.

John Batal sold the property to Anne E. Simon Ronshagen on Mar. 29, 1976. William J. & Kathleen M. Scanlon purchased the property on Apr. 1, 1977. Bill Scanlon was the owner of Scanlon's Hardware Store in Lawrence and in Andover. First buying out Hills Hardware then re-locating to the Barnard Block where Cole's Hardware store was located. His wife Cathleen was an English Teacher in the Andover Public Schools. The Scanlon's owned for 15 years.

Bibliography/References: 

Essex County Registry Deeds, Salem, MA
Essex Northern Registry Deeds, Lawrence, MA
Andover Maps, 1852, 1872, 1888, 1906, 1926
Andover Street Directories
See Map plan #704 - American Woolen Company - Sept. 1927
#879 - June 1932 - Textile Realty Company lot 13

Owners;
Henry P. Binney - Apr. 24, 1919 - b. 398 p. 52 - 9.86 acres
American Woolen Company - Dec. 30, 1920 - b. 435 p. 215
Textile Realty Company - Dec. 30, 1931 - b. 563 p. 351
Andover Shawsheen Realty Co. - June. 30, 1932 - b. 565 p. 87 - parcel
Bartley J. & Hannah H. Higgins - Dec. 29, 1933 - b. 574 p. 210
John T. Batal - June 9, 1937 - b. 649 p. 496
John T & Mary H. Batal - Apr. 9, 1957 - b. 854 p. 22
John T. Batal -
Anne E. (Simon) Ronshagen - Mar. 29, 1976 - b. 1279 p. 170
William J. & Kathleen M. Scanlon - Apr. 1, 1977 - b. 1305 p. 257
Andover Bank, Michael J. Ecker, VP - May 18, 1992 - b. 3466 p. 285
Andrew W. & Christine Spaulding - Aug. 10,, 1992 - b. 3521 p. 107
Gene P. & Carolyn A. Rainville - Feb. 5, 2008 - b. 11056 p. 254

Inventory Data:

StreetWilliam St
PlaceShawsheen Village - Frye Village
Historic DistrictShawsheen Village NRH District
Historic NameHiggins - Batal House
Present Useresidence
Original Useresidence
Construction Date1920 - 1922
SourceERDS, ENRDL
Architectural StyleColonial Revival
Architect/BuilderAdden & Parker of Boston
Foundationstone and brick
Wall/Trimbrick veneer/wood
Roofgable - slate
Conditionexcellent
Acreage0.222 acre
Settingresidential
Map and parcel52-58
Recorded byJames S. Batchelder
OrganizationAndover Preservation Commission
Date entered6/21/2015

Map: