Pleasant View Home - Concord, NH
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member silverquill
N 43° 11.718 W 071° 33.508
19T E 292120 N 4785680
The building, a large, early 20th century Georgian Revival, was constructed in 1925 to 1927 to plans prepared by Boston architect Arthur H. Bowditch. Mary Baker Eddy lived here for 16 years, and bequeathed it as a retirement home which opened in 1927
Waymark Code: WM1Q8A
Location: New Hampshire, United States
Date Posted: 06/22/2007
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member deano1943
Views: 140


In 1891, Mary Baker Eddy, founder of the Christian Science Church, named her new home Pleasant View because of the loveliness of its setting. Her will directed that the site serve as the location for a retirement community.

In the first year of use in 1927, the original Pleasant View attracted over 13,500 visitors. Within three years, Pleasant View was filled to capacity and faced a waiting list. In 1975, Pleasant View was sold to the State of New Hampshire who used the property for psychiatric patients. In 1981, the State vacated the premises. Two years later, Pleasant View was restored and returned to its original use: a privately operated retirement home.



The building, a large, early 20th century Georgian Revival, was constructed in 1925 to 1927 to plans prepared by Boston architect Arthur H. Bowditch. The main building is sited to take full advantage of open southern views. Situated on 48 acres in Concord, noted landscape architect Arthur A. Shurcliff of Boston laid out formal gardens in the rear and to the west of the main building. Though portions of the landscape design were re-executed in the 1950s by Hooksett, New Hampshire landscaper Leon Pearson, many of the original plantings and walks survive, including the primary walkway. A late 19th century cast iron fence with scrolled gates marked the entrance to Mary Baker Eddy’s former house on the site and still stands.



Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910)

While living at her "Pleasant View" home (1892 to 1908) once on this site, Mrs. Eddy founded the First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Mass., headquarters of the Christian Science movement. From "Pleasant View," some six miles from her birthplace in Bow, she guided its worldwide activities and gained fame as a religious leader and writer. The buildings erected on this site in 1927 served as a home for retired Christian Science practitioners and nurses until 1975. The former Christian Science home, known as Pleasant View Home, was listed on the National Register in 1984.
Street address:
227 Pleasant St.
Concord, NH United States
03301


County / Borough / Parish: Merrimack County

Year listed: 1984

Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event, Architecture/Engineering

Periods of significance: 1925-1949

Historic function: Domestic

Current function: Commerce/Trade, Domestic

Privately owned?: yes

Primary Web Site: [Web Link]

Secondary Website 1: [Web Link]

Season start / Season finish: Not listed

Hours of operation: Not listed

Secondary Website 2: Not listed

National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.
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