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9-11 Forest Avenue
Mary L. Walker
and her husband
Calvin F. Gibbs
Chemist
Built in 1912
Researched and written by Amanda Eddy
March 2022
Historic Salem Inc.
The Bowditch House
9 North Street, Salem, MA 01970
(978) 745-0799 | HistoricSalem.org
©2022
�9-11 Forest Avenue
Salem City Assessor’s Office
The Gibbs Family
Calvin F. Gibbs (1852-1930) was born on September 26,1930 in Black River, New York.
His father was born in Massachusetts and his mother in New York. Calvin had a brother, R.D.
Gibbs of Black River, New York. Calvin was a licensed pharmacist and was a druggist. In the
late 1880s and early 1890s, Calvin was a chemist for the Eureka Chemical Company
(Syracuse, New York.)1 Around the turn of the century, he changed careers and was manager of
Woolworth’s, having managed locations in Utica, New York, Manchester, New Hampshire,
Salem, Massachusetts, and the Washington Street store in Boston, Massachusetts.2 A few
1
2
Syracuse, NY, 1889-90. Syracuse, NY: Boyd's Directory Corps., 1887-1894.
The Boston Globe; Publication Date: 23 Jun 1930; Publication Place: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
�years after moving to Salem, Calvin took a break between his two careers and managed a
variety store at 181 Essex Street in town.3 According to his obituary, he was a dedicated
Salemite having been a part of the Salem Chamber of Commerce, a director of the Family
Welfare Society of Salem, a member of the Salem Temple Club, and was one of the oldest
members of Watertown lodge A.F. & A. M.
Mary L. (Walker) Gibbs (1858-1954) was born in January 1858 in Watertown, Jefferson
County, New York to Joseph (1819-1895) and Dorcas (Bailey) Walker (1829-1911).4 Mary spent
her childhood in New York, living with her father, mother, three siblings, and grandparents. Her
father was a gardener, born and raised in New York while her mother was from England but was
raised in New York. She stayed home with her children. Mary had two brothers, George H.
Walker (1860-1930) and Edward S. Walker (1861-1917), and a sister, Sophia B. Walker
(1863-1932). Mary’s grandfather, Henry Bailey (b. 1798) was an English immigrant who was a
retired farmer.5 Mary’s grandmother, Hannah Bailey (b. 1797) was also an English immigrant
who spent her life tending to her children.6
Mary and Calvin were married in 1882. Before moving to Forest Ave, the Gibbs family
lived in New York state. In 1889, they lived at 29 Ash Street in Syracuse. 7 By 1897, they were
settled in Salem, living at 343 Lafayette Street8, and then moving to 12 Laurel Street by 1910. 9
The Gibbs’ also employed a servant, Rosa Lindgren (b.1889), while living on Laurel
Street and Forest Ave. Rosa was a Finnish immigrant who came to the United States in 1908. 10
3
Salem City Directory, 1897
Find a Grave. Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. Memorial ID: 1154421716
5
Census of the state of New York, for 1875. Microfilm. New York State Archives, Albany, New York.
6
Year: 1870; Census Place: Watertown Ward 1, Jefferson, New York; Roll: M593_945; Page: 681B
7
Syracuse, NY, 1889-90. Syracuse, NY: Boyd's Directory Corps., 1889.
4
8
9
Year: 1900; Census Place: Salem Ward 5, Essex, Massachusetts; Roll: 648; Page: 13; Enumeration
District: 0458; FHL microfilm: 1240648
10
Year: 1910; Census Place: Salem Ward 5, Essex, Massachusetts; Roll: T624_588; Page: 7B;
Enumeration District: 0473; FHL microfilm: 1374601
�After Rosa, in the 1930s, the Gibbs’ employed Itha A. Pothier, a French-Canadian immigrant
who came to the United States in 1915 at the age of 16.11
Calvin F. Gibbs passed away at age 78 on June 22,1930. He is buried at Brookside
Cemetery in Watertown, New York. Mary L. (Walker) Gibbs passed away at age 95 in 1954. She
is buried beside her late husband in Watertown, New York.12 Mary and Calvin’s daughter,
Sophie, and her second husband, Herbert H. Sage, inherited the home after Mary’s death.
The Bates Family
Sophie Louise Gibbs (1882-1976). Sophie was born on September 13, 1882 in
Jefferson County, New York. Sophie married William P. Bates (1881-1937) on June 15, 1910 in
Salem. William P. Bates was born July 14, 1881 in Everett, Massachusetts to Atkins H. Bates
and Martha C. (Proctor) Bates.13 After William P.’s mother died, his father remarried Carolyn P.
Bates.14 William P. was a broker clerk. He seemed to enjoy traveling, as records show he
traveled to Honduras15, Cuba16, Jamaica17, and frequented Puerto Rico.18
11
Year: 1930; Census Place: Salem, Essex, Massachusetts; Roll: 903; Page: 9A; Enumeration District:
258; Image: 65.0.
12
Find a Grave. Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. Memorial IDs: 114683647 and
114683669
13
New England Historic Genealogical Society; Boston, Massachusetts; Massachusetts Vital Records,
1911–1915
14
Year: 1900; Census Place: Salem Ward 2, Essex, Massachusetts; Roll: 647; Page: 10; Enumeration
District: 0444; FHL microfilm: 1240647
15
The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; Series Title: Passenger Lists of Vessels
Arriving at Boston, Massachusetts, 1891-1943; NAI Number: 4319742; Record Group Title: Records of
the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; Record Group Number: 85; Series Number:
T843; NARA Roll Number: 374
16
Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897. Microfilm Publication M237,
675 rolls. NAI: 6256867. Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36. National Archives at
Washington, D.C.
17
The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; Series Title: Passenger Lists of Vessels
Arriving at Boston, Massachusetts, 1891-1943; NAI Number: 4319742; Record Group Title: Records of
the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; Record Group Number: 85; Series Number:
T843; NARA Roll Number: 125
18
Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1897-1957. Microfilm Publication
T715, 8892 rolls. NAI: 300346. Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service; National Archives
at Washington, D.C.
�Sophie and William P. Bates and their two sons lived right next door to Mary and Calvin
at 7 Forest Avenue. Their sons, William G. Bates (1911-1997) and Richard W. Bates
(1918-1964), Sophie, and William P. Bates lived there up until William P. Bates died in 1937,
when Sophie and Richard moved in with Sophie’s mother, Mary, at 9 Forest Ave. 19 Throughout
the years, the census’ lists Sophie and William P. Bates living separately - Sophie at 9 Forest
Ave with her sons and parents, and William P. at 7 Forest Ave with only the housekeeper. 20
William G. Bates was born September 15, 1911 and attended Dartmouth College. After
college, he moved to Hartford, Connecticut to accept a job as an investment analyst. He married
Eleanor Blaney of Salem, Massachusetts.21 They had two children.22 William G. died on
January 22, 1997.23 William G.’s brother, Richard, was born on June 28, 1918. He attended
Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. After college, Richard enlisted in the United
States Army on November 28, 1942. After serving in World War II active duty combat, he was
honorably discharged on August 11, 1945. He received a Purple Heart. Having never married,
Richard died on May 31, 1964 at age 43.24
Sophie L. (Gibbs) Bates was remarried to Herbert H. Sage (1882-1965) in 1948, when
Sophie changed her last name from Bates to Sage. Herbert was born in March 1882 in North
Hempstead, New York to Willie Sage (b. 1858) and Emma D. Sage (b. 1860), both of whom
were born in England. He had one sister, Ethel E. Sage who was born February 1886 in New
York as well.25 Herbert had been previously married to Helen A. (Lovell) Sage but they divorced
19
Find a Grave. Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. Memorial ID: 215505838
It is unclear what the situation was, so the resident years may be slightly askew.
21
The Boston Globe; Publication Date: 30/ Mar/ 1937; Publication Place: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
22
Hartford Courant; Publication Date: 24 Jan 1997; Publication Place: Hartford, Connecticut, USA
23
Connecticut Department of Health. Connecticut Death Index, 1949-2001. Hartford, CT, USA:
Connecticut Department of Health.
24
National Archives at St. Louis, MO; St. Louis, MO, USA; Applications for Headstones, 1/1/1925 6/30/1970; NAID: NAID 596118; Record Group Number: 92; Record Group Title: Records of the Office of
the Quartermaster General
25
Year: 1900; Census Place: North Hempstead, Nassau, New York; Roll: 1079; Page: 1; Enumeration
District: 0714; FHL microfilm: 1241079
20
�in 1945, the cause being listed as “abandonment.”26 In the 1930s, Herbert was living in Windsor,
Vermont with Helen, their daughter, Helen Lavalette (1919-1994), and his in-laws. After moving
to Massachusetts, Herbert began work as a salesman at the General Heat and Appliance
Company.27 It seems that there was some scandalous behavior, as Herbert and Helen did not
divorce until 1945, and Herbert and Sophie did not marry until 1948. Yet in the Salem City
Directory for 1939, Herbert is listed as living at 9 Forest Ave (Sophie’s residence.) In 1941,
Lebanon, New Hampshire city directories have Herbert and Helen listed as living together on W.
Lebanon Rd, Herbert being the proprietor at The Blue Shutter.28 Regardless of the situation he
got himself into, Herbert and Sophie ended up married eventually and they lived out their days
at 9 Forest Ave. Herbert died in 1965 and Sophie on July 2, 1976. Both are buried in Greenlawn
Cemetery in Salem.29
After Sophie’s death, her son, William G. Bates, the executor of her will, sells the home.
26
Year: 1900; Census Place: North Hempstead, Nassau, New York; Roll: 1079; Page: 1; Enumeration
District: 0714; FHL microfilm: 1241079
27
Boston City Directory, 1939
28
Lebanon, New Hampshire City Directories, 1941
29
Find a Grave. Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. Memorial IDs: 92671445 and
215505838
�SOURCES
�Chain of Deeds Table
Both Parcel 1 and Parcel 2 hereinbefore described are conveyed subject to a Taking for extending
Wisteria Street to Forest Avenue recorded in Book 2207, Page 130.
Date
Purchased
Homeowner
Years
Owned
Number
of
Years
Purchase
Price
Docume Notes
nts
Referenc
ed
December
10, 1896
Charles A.
Putnam
n/a
n/a
n/a
1497-1
Plan of Lots of
the Almy
Estate
November
9, 1909
Martha L.
Roberts
19091912
3
$1 and other
valuable
consideratio
ns
1989-55
8
Bought the
land from
Almy Estate
March 20,
1912
Mary L. Gibbs 19121954
42
$1 and other
valuable
consideratio
ns
2134-51
2
Essex
Probate
#246429
Parcel 1, aka
lot 13 and a
portion of lot
12
Sophie L.
(Gibbs) Sage
William G.
Bates
23
1954
-1977
Essex
Naumkeag
Probate Trust
#334562 Company,
Bates
(Sophie’s son)
is the
Executor
under Sage’s
will (Parcel 2)
February
14, 1977
John E. Curtis 1977
Mary M.
Peever
>1
$52,000
6324-29
7
Parcel 1 and 2
February
14, 1977
Gloucester
Cooperative
3
Foreclos-ure
mortgage
6324-30
1
Holder of
Mortgage
19771980
�Bank
transfer $52,000
(Foreclosure)
This deed
actually holds
3 properties
from Curtis
and Peever:
“1 parcel of
land in
Gloucester
and 2 parcels
of land in
Salem”
March 10,
1980
Pelham
Realty Trust
19801981
1
$75,000
6692-69
William E.
Pelletier
Louise H.
Pelletier
September
28, 1981
Virginia
Carson,
Trustee of
Pelham
Realty Trust
1981
n/a
n/a
6869-4
Master Deed
of the
Condominium
Unit 9 was
owned by
Virginia
Carson and
Unit 11 owned
by William
Pelletier
William E.
Pelletier
Trustee of
Pelham
Realty Trust
January
14, 1983
Steven A.
Sass
Ellen Golub
19831986
3
$76,500
7032-53
8
October
31, 1986
Frank H.
Jernigan
Karolyn S.
Jernigan
19861996
10
$175,000
8603-35
5
June 26,
1996
Karolyn S.
Jernigan
1996
>1
For nominal
consideratio
n paid
13700-2
25
December
2, 1996
James E.
Broadnax
Jacqueline B.
19962001
5
$161,500
13871-2
33
�Broadnax
November
23, 2001
Jacqueline B.
Broadnax
20012010
9
$240,000
17947-3
April 13,
2010
Federal
National
Mortgage
Association
2010
>1
$237,881
29391-4
83
July 20,
2010
Craig M.
Scholles
Dee A. Risley
201011+
present
$260,000
29635-2
2
Foreclosure
Deed
The price was
the mortgage
being
forwarded to
the owner.
Residents Table
9 Forest Ave Residents Table
Resident
Years
Occupation
Calvin F. Gibbs
1912-1930
Manager at department
store (558 Washington, B.)
Mary L. Gibbs
1912-1954
At home
Sophie L. (Gibbs) (Bates)
Sage
1934-1948,1954-1976
At home
Richard W. Bates
1919-1964
United States Army
William G. Bates
1930-1937
Investment analyst
Herbert H. Sage
1939?, 1954-1965
Salesman at General Heat
and Appliance Company
**Sophie owned the home until 1976 when she died, so it is presumed she lived there until then, even
though Salem directories end in 1964.
11 Forest Ave Residents Table
Residents
Years
Occupation
�William W. Copley
1912-1931
Manager at Peabody glue
and gelatin factory
Eva C. Copley
1931-1940
At home
Kenneth F. Copley
(Not before
1931)1932-1940
Clerk in Boston
Louise C. Copley
1912-1940
Reporter for the Salem
News
Eleanor D. Copley
1912-1919, 1922-1926
Physical Education
Teacher
Everett A. Sumner
1948-1950
Shoe machine
manufacturer
Bertha L. Sumner
1948-1950
At home
Wellesley W. Jones
1946
Clerk
Edith A. (Sumner) Jones
1946
Bank clerk
Agnes T. McGee
1951-1955, 1958-1964
Forewoman at Parker
Brothers
Arlie M. Gilbert
1956-1957
Assessor for the Town of
Danvers, Massachusetts
Leone G. Gilbert
1956-1957
IBM Operator, Hytron
�1906-1938 Atlas, Plate 39
Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds
1911 Atlas Plate 2
Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds
�Find a Grave. Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. Memorial ID: 114683669
Calvin Gibbs Gravestone
Find a Grave. Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. Memorial ID: 114683647
Mary L. Walker Gibbs Gravestone
�Find a Grave. Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. Memorial ID: 1154421716 &
115421655
Joseph T. Walker and Dorcas Bailey Walker Gravestone
Sophia B. (Walker) Cole with her daughter and grandchildren.
Ancestry.com, K. Hamlin
�Sophia B. (Walker) Cole with her granddaughter, Constance Ann Cole.
Ancestry.com, K. Hamlin
�Calvin F. Gibbs Border Crossing, 1916
Library and Archives Canada; 1908-1935 Border Entries; Roll: T-5499
Calvin F. Gibbs Obituary, June 23, 1930
�The Boston Globe; Publication Date: 23 Jun 1930; Publication Place: Boston, Massachusetts, USA; URL:
https://www.newspapers.com/image/431241530/?article=5f1d0b42-b8cf-4ffe-bb5e-d35212be3d99&focus
=0.72326714,0.77069604,0.8402698,0.9400785&xid=3355
William P. Bates Travels to Honduras on the ship San Gil.
The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; Series Title: Passenger Lists of Vessels
Arriving at Boston, Massachusetts, 1891-1943; NAI Number: 4319742; Record Group Title: Records of
the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; Record Group Number: 85; Series Number:
T843; NARA Roll Number: 374
William P. Bates Travels to Cuba on the ship Munargo
Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897. Microfilm Publication M237, 675
rolls. NAI: 6256867. Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36. National Archives at
Washington, D.C.
�William P. Bates Travels to Puerto Rico on the ship San Lorenzo
Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1897-1957. Microfilm Publication
T715, 8892 rolls. NAI: 300346. Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service; National Archives
at Washington, D.C.
William P. Bates Travels to Jamaica on the ship Admiral Dewey
The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; Series Title: Passenger Lists of Vessels
Arriving at Boston, Massachusetts, 1891-1943; NAI Number: 4319742; Record Group Title: Records of
the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; Record Group Number: 85; Series Number:
T843; NARA Roll Number: 125
�Sophie L. (Walker) (Gibbs) Sage Obituary Short, July 2, 1976
Hartford Courant; Publication Date: 3 Jul 1976; Publication Place: Hartford, Connecticut, USA
�William P. Bates Gravestone
Find a Grave. Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. Memorial ID: 215505838
National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; WWII Draft Registration Cards for Connecticut,
10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 24
�William G. Bates and Eleanor Blaney Wedding Plans Announcement
The Boston Globe; Publication Date: 19/ Jul/ 1937; Publication Place: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
�National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Draft Registration Cards for Massachusetts,
10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 50
National Archives at St. Louis, MO; St. Louis, MO, USA; Applications for Headstones, 1/1/1925 6/30/1970; NAID: NAID 596118; Record Group Number: 92; Record Group Title: Records of the Office of
the Quartermaster General
�William G. Bates Obituary, January 24, 1997
Hartford Courant; Publication Date: 24 Jan 1997; Publication Place: Hartford, Connecticut, USA
�Year: 1900; Census Place: North Hempstead, Nassau, New York; Roll: 1079; Page: 1; Enumeration
District: 0714; FHL microfilm: 1241079
�DEEDS
�Inventory No:
SAL.4356
Historic Name:
Gibbs, Calvin F. and Mary L. Walker Double
House
Address:
9-11 Forest Ave
City/Town:
Salem
Village/Neighborhood:
South Salem;
Local No:
Year Constructed:
1912
Architectural Style(s):
No style;
Use(s):
Multiple Family Dwelling House; Other Residential;
Significance:
Architecture;
Area(s):
SAL.GN
Designation(s):
Building Materials:
Roof: Asphalt Shingle;
Wall: Wood; Wood Shingle;
Foundation: Concrete Cinderblock;
Demolished
No
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This file was accessed on: Friday, March 25, 2022 at 12:16 AM
�FORM B BUILDING
MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION
MASSACHUSETTS ARCHIVES BUILDING
220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02125
Assessor’s Number
USGS Quad
32-0198-801
& 802
Salem
Town/City:
Area(s)
Form Number
GN
SAL.4356
Salem
Place: (neighborhood or village):
Photograph
South Salem
Address:
9-11 Forest Avenue
Historic Name: Calvin F. and Mary L. Gibbs Double House
Uses: Present:
multiple family residence (condominium)
Original: multiple family residence
Date of Construction: 1912
Source:
deeds, historic atlases
Style/Form:
Shingle/hipped block
Architect/Builder:
unknown
Exterior Material:
Foundation: rock-faced molded concrete block
View from NE.
Locus Map (north at top)
Wall/Trim:
wood shingles/wood
Roof:
asphalt shingles
Outbuildings/Secondary Structures:
Garage, 1912
Major Alterations (with dates):
Window sash replaced
Condition:
good
Moved: no
yes
Date:
Acreage: approx. 0.30
Source: Mass GIS Oliver Parcel Viewer.
Setting: The house is situated in a dense urban residential
area characterized by single and multiple family dwellings
built between the mid-19th century and the mid-20th century.
Recorded by: Neil Larson & Kathryn Grover
Organization: Salem Dept. of Planning & Development
Date (month / year): June 2019
RECEIVED
OCT 23 2019
MASS. HIST. COMM.
4/11
Follow Massachusetts Historical Commission Survey Manual instructions for completing this form.
�INVENTORY FORM B CONTINUATION SHEET
SALEM
MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION
9-11 Forest Avenue
Area(s)
Form No.
220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02125
GN
SAL.4356
Recommended for listing in the National Register of Historic Places.
If checked, you must attach a completed National Register Criteria Statement form.
ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION:
The Calvin F. and Mary L. Gibbs Double House, built 1912, is a two-story wood frame double house with identical, mirrored
dwellings side-by-side. Entrance bays at the front corners are stepped back behind the Forest Avenue façade, which contains
two widely-spaced windows on each floor, one for each unit; porches distinguish the entrances, projecting past both front and
side elevations and fronted by columns, and windows surmount them in the second story of the recessed bays. The eave lines
on all four sides are decorated with small brackets. Side elevations are identical with bay windows centered and flanked by
single windows on the first story, three windows on the second and a hipped-roof dormer centered in the roof. The first story of
the rear façade is spanned by a porch with turned posts, beneath which are back doors for each unit and double windows. The
second story follows the same pattern with windows at the ends instead of doorways. A dormer with paired windows is centered
in the roof. There are stairs at the corners of the porch, which has been extended with an open deck in the center.
The house is built out within a few feet of the front and side lot lines behind grassy setbacks. A large rear yard occupies the
equivalent of another house lot, and there is a one-story masonry two garage with a stucco exterior and a hipped roof. What
appear to be original glazed doors raise and pivot to open.
HISTORICAL NARRATIVE:
In March 1912, Martha L. Roberts sold one lot and part of another on Forest Avenue in Salem to Mary L. Gibbs (1858-1954).1
The lots were within a 32-lot subdivision that Salem merchant James Fergus Almy (1833-99) platted in 1896 around his own
Lafayette Street homestead, between the south side of Forest Avenue and the north side of Lincoln Avenue and ranging west to
Park Avenue. Almy, a native of North Adams and a principal in the longtime Salem department store Almy, Bigelow, and
Washburn, had been acquiring large tracts of land in South Salem since at least the 1860s, when he, coal and wood dealer
Charles S. Clark, and Nathaniel Wiggin acquired the Ezekiel Hersey Derby estate in South Salem. Almy, sometimes solely and
sometimes with Clark, filed at least a dozen subdivisions plans in the area from 1867 until his death. The Forest Avenue lots
were part of an 83-lot subdivision Almy recorded in 1867. It ran in a rough U shape from the Boston and Maine rail corridor on
the west to the west side of Lafayette Street and from Loring Avenue (then the Lynn Road) to Park Avenue, and it embraced
parts of Broadway and Maple, Lincoln, and Forest Avenues. Almy’s 1896 plan was for a section of this larger tract. The lots
conveyed to Gibbs in 1912 were lots 13, at the southwest corner of Forest Avenue and Wisteria Street, and part of lot 12 just
west of lot 13.2 By 1912 Gibb’s husband Calvin F. Gibbs (1852-1930) is listed at 9 Forest Avenue in the Salem street directory.
Born in Black River, New York, Calvin F. Gibbs began his career as a druggist in nearby Watertown, but for most of his life he
managed F. W. Woolworth’s stores for Frank Winfield Woolworth, said to be a childhood friend; Woolworth was born in the same
year as Gibbs in Rodman, New York, about 15 miles from Black River, and clerked in a dry goods store in Watertown before
beginning his chain of “five-cent stores” in 1879. Gibbs managed Woolworth stores in Utica (where the first, though
unsuccessful, F. W. Woolworth’s was founded) and Manchester, New Hampshire, before moving to Salem in the late 1890s.3 By
1899 he was living at 343 Lafayette Street with his wife, Mary L. Walker Gibbs, and their daughter Sophie Louise (1882-1976),
and managed Woolworth’s Salem store on Essex Street. By 1910 he was managing the Woolworth’s in the Arcade building on
Washington Street in Boston. Gibbs and his family lived at 12 Laurel Street in Salem in that year with one live-in domestic
servant who had emigrated from Finland in 1908. When he moved into the new house at 9 Forest Avenue, he rented the other
side, numbered 11 Forest Avenue, to Will W. Copley (1864-1931), a Connecticut native who managed a Peabody glue and
gelatin factory. He lived with his wife Eva C. Swift Copley (1863-1947) and their children Louise, Eleanor, and Kenneth, born
between 1898 and 1902. By 1930 Kenneth was a clerk in Boston and Louise a society reporter for the Salem Evening News;
1
Martha L. Roberts to Mary L. Gibbs, 20 March 1912, SECD 2134:512.
“Plan of a Portion of the Derby Farm in Salem,” July 1867, SECP 727:300; “House Lots on Lafayette Street, Wisteria St., & Forest Park &
Lincoln Avenus, Salem, Mass., 10 December 1896, SECP 1497:1.
3 “Calvin F. Gibbs Dead in Salem in 77 th Year,” Boston Globe, 23 June 1930, 5.
2
Continuation sheet 1
�INVENTORY FORM B CONTINUATION SHEET
MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION
SALEM
9-11 Forest Avenue
Area(s)
Form No.
220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02125
GN
SAL.4356
both then still lived in their parents’ household. After Will Copley’s death, his widow and children Louise and Kenneth remained
at 11 Forest Avenue until about 1941; by 1944 they had moved to 248 Lafayette Street. 4
Calvin Gibbs died in 1930, and his widow Mary and married daughter Sophie L. Bates continued to own and occupy 9 Forest
Avenue. Sophie Gibbs had married Everett-born clerk William Proctor Bates in 1910 and had lived with him and their sons
William G. and Richard W. Bates at 7 Forest Avenue in 1920; Bates managed a grocery storage facility. By 1930, Sophie Bates
and her sons were living with her parents, perhaps because her father was ill, while her husband remained at 7 Forest Avenue
with a housekeeper. By 1940 9-11 Forest Avenue was occupied by Mary Gibbs, then 82 years old, daughter Sophie Bates,
grandson Richard, then 21 years old, and the widowed Eva Copley. In 1948, Sophie Gibbs Bates married again, to clerk and
salesman Herbert Henry Sage (1882-1965), and the couple lived with her mother at 9 Forest Avenue. Sage was born on Long
Island to English immigrant parents and pursued numerous careers; he was a bank clerk in 1910, a publishing house clerk
in1920, a dairy farmer in Windsor, Vermont, in 1930, and an automobile salesman in Salem by 1941. By 1947 he was clerking at
Eaton the Druggist in Salem.
The Sages remained at 9 Forest Avenue until they died, and in 1977 Sophie Sage’s son from her first marriage, William G.
Bates, and the executor of Sage’s will sold 9-11 Forest Avenue to John E. Curtis and Mary M. Peever. 5 Curtis and Peever
defaulted on their mortgage with Gloucester Cooperative Bank three years later, and the bank sold the property to Pelham
Realty Trust. In 1981 Pelham Realty trustee Virginia Carson converted the house into two condominiums and sold 11 Forest
Avenue to C. Ronald and Susan C. Gilchrist in September 1982; they in turn sold the condominium in 1984 to Richard M. and
Debra C. Lobsitz, the owners of record in 2019. 6 Carson sold 9 Forest Avenue in January 1983 to Steven A. Sass and Ellen A.
Golub, who owned it for three years; Frank H. and Karolyn S. Jernigan owned the condominium from 1986 to late 1996. Wells
Fargo Bank foreclosed on the mortgage on the 9 Forest Avenue condominium in 2010, and in the same year the Federal
National Mortgage Association sold the property to Craig M. Schoelles and Dee A. Risely, who owned 9 Forest Avenue in 2019. 7
BIBLIOGRAPHY and/or REFERENCES
Published Sources
Arrington, Benjamin F., ed. Municipal History of Essex County in Massachusetts. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Co.,
1922.
Hurd, D. Hamilton. History of Essex County, Massachusetts. Philadelphia: J. W. Lewis, 1888.
Jones, Arthur B. The Salem Fire. Boston: Gorham Press, 1914. Internet Archive, https://archive.org/details/salemfire00jones.
Longley, Edmund W., et al., Salem Rebuilding Commission. Salem: Newcomb & Gauss, 1917.Salem State University Digital
Commons, Books, Pamphlets, and Documents: Great Salem Fire of 1914,
http://digitalcommons.salemstate.edu/fire_documents/3.
Archival Sources
Boston MA. Massachusetts Historical Commission. Historic Resource Survey reports and forms and National Register
Nomination Forms for Salem properties. Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System. http://mhc-macris.net/index.htm.
Salem, MA. Assessor’s Records
Historic Commission Records including local survey forms & architecture series booklets
4
The 1930 census mistakenly shows state boiler inspector Henry Bushek and his family as owning 11 Forest Avenue, but directories
consistently show Bushek at 13 Forest Avenue.
5 William G. Bates, West Hartford CT, to John E. Curtis and Mary M. Peever, 9-11 Forest Avenue, 25 January 1977, SECD 6324:297;
Naumkeag Trust Company, executive will Sophie L. Sage, to John E. Curtis and Mary M. Peever, 14 Feburay 1977, SECD 6324:298
6 Gloucester Cooperative Bank to William E. and Louise H. Pelletier, trustees Pelham Realty Trust, 10 March 1980, SECD 6692:69; Master
Deed of 9-11 Forest Avenue Condominiums, 28 September 1981, SECD 6869:4; Virginia Carson and William E. Pelletier, trustees 9-11 Forest
Avenue Condominium Trust, declaration of trust, 28 September 1981, SECD 6869:22; Virginia Carson, trustee Pelham Realty Trust, to C.
Ronald and Susan C. Gilchrist, 17 September 1982, SECD 6979:106; C. Ronald and Susan G. Gilchrist to Ricahrd M. and Debra C. Lobsitz,
13 September 1984, SECD 7581:14.
7 Virginia Carson, trustee Pelham Realty Trust, to Steven A. Sass and Ellen A. Golub, 9 Forest Avenue, 14 January 1983, SECD 7032:538;
Steven A. Sass and Ellen Golub to Frank H. and Karolyn S. Jernigan, 9 Forest Avenue, 31 October 1986, SECD 8603:355; Frank H. and
Karolyn S. Jernigan to Karolyn S. Jernigan, 26 June 1996, SECD 13700:225; Frank H. and Karolyn S. Jernigan to Karolyn S. Jernigan, 26
June 1996, SECD 13700:225; Wells Fargo Bank to Federal National Mortgage Association, 12 March 2010, SECD 29391:483; Wells Fargo
Bank to Federal National Mortgage Association, 12 March 2010, SECD 29391:483.
Continuation sheet 2
�INVENTORY FORM B CONTINUATION SHEET
MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION
SALEM
9-11 Forest Avenue
Area(s)
Form No.
220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02125
GN
SAL.4356
Salem MA. Southern Essex Registry of Deeds. Plan and deed records
Salem City Directories.
Washington, D.C. U.S. Bureau of Census. United States Censuses. 1790-1940. http://www.ancestry.com
Internet Sources
MHC Reconnaissance Survey Town Report: Salem. 1985. https://www.sec.state.ma.us/mhc/mhcpdf/townreports/Essex/sal.pdf.
Massachusetts Newspapers. Newspapers.com and GenealogyBank.com.
Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History Records. Ancestry.com.
Google Books Search. Google.com.
Massachusetts Vital Records. AmericanAncestors.org.
Maps
1872 Atlas of Essex County. D. G. Beers.
1890, 1906, 1906-50, 1957. Sanborn Map Company Fire Insurance Maps.
FIGURES
Fig.1: The 1867 Almy plan of this part of the Derby estate shows Forest Avenue before Wisteria Street
was laid out between Forest and Lincoln Avenues (SECP 727:300).
Continuation sheet 3
�INVENTORY FORM B CONTINUATION SHEET
MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION
SALEM
9-11 Forest Avenue
Area(s)
Form No.
220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02125
GN
SAL.4356
Fig,2: This 1896 plan shows lots 12 and part of 13, where 9-11 Forest Avenue was built, at the corner of Forest
Avenue and Wisteria Street (SECP 1497:1).
Continuation sheet 4
�INVENTORY FORM B CONTINUATION SHEET
MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION
SALEM
9-11 Forest Avenue
Area(s)
Form No.
220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02125
GN
SAL.4356
PHOTOGRAPHS (all photos by Neil Larson, 2019)
View from NW.
View from east.
Continuation sheet 5
����������������������������������������������������������
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Forest Avenue
Historic Salem, Inc. House History
A resource made available by Historic Salem, Inc. detailing the history of Salem's houses.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
9-11 Forest Avenue, Salem, MA, 01970
Subject
The topic of the resource
House History
Description
An account of the resource
Mary L. Walker
and her husband
Calvin F. Gibbs
Chemist
Built in 1912
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Historic Salem Inc.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Historic Salem Inc. house histories
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Historic Salem Inc.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
Built in 1912
House history completed 2022
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Amanda Eddy
Language
A language of the resource
English
1912
2022
9-11 Forest Avenue
chemist
Gibbs
Massachusetts
Salem
Walker
-
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eda4926735a26d1c75ef8cf63da57454
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Forest Avenue
Historic Salem, Inc. House History
A resource made available by Historic Salem, Inc. detailing the history of Salem's houses.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
6 Forest Avenue, Salem, Massachusetts 01970
Subject
The topic of the resource
House history
Description
An account of the resource
Built for Martha O. Howes, secretary, and Martha L. Roberts, lawyer
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Historic Salem, Inc.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Historic Salem, Inc. house histories
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Historic Salem, Inc., Salem Historical Society
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1905, 2004
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Robert Booth
Language
A language of the resource
English
6
Almy
Avenue
Forest
Howes
Martha
Massachusetts
Roberts
Salem