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History of Land Development in Waltham, Mass.
Surveys of Land Development in the City of Waltham 1630 to Present
12. Washington and Wadsworth Avenues Area Just East of Moody Street
With respect to the land on the east side of Moody Street, heading north from Derby Street, as previously mentioned, the lot enclosing Dexter Street had been acquired by Jonathan D. Fiske, in 1860, from Francis Cabot Lowell via John E. Tolman. Just to the north of this was a lot belonging to Deacon Joel Fuller in the early 1840s (based on boundaries given in MLR 444/7 & 13 and 459/65 & 68), enclosing the beginnings of today's Washington and Wadsworth Avenues. In 1862, Roxia and Harrison Neal sold the lot to Charles G. Fry (MLR 885/538). Roxia Neal was the widow of David Fuller (the younger), who was the son of Joel and Sarah Fuller. The lot measured roughly 470 feet along Moody Street and, on average, around 600 feet east from the street. North of this was land owned by the watch factory.
In 1863, Charles Fry sold the southern part of his recently acquired lot to John E. Tolman (MLR 915/2), who flipped it to George Hastings in 1864 (MLR 923/424). The lot measured about 240 feet along Moody Street, and enclosed the area of first block of today's Washington Avenue. George Hastings was a watchmaker. Fry had already sold off the northern part of his lot to George Hastings, in 1862 (MLR 896/123). Hastings' northern lot was bounded by the American Watch Company on the north. This was part of the land included in the Doan Plan. It appears that these lots did not exactly align with a rectangular grid plan coming off Moody Street, since there were a whole bunch of subsequent deeds among Hastings, Fiske, and the American Watch Company for triangularly shaped lots in 1866 (MLR 994/470, 473, and 475; and 1148/228). In 1878, Sarah Hastings, George's widow, sold off the combined Hastings lot to William Chatfield (MLR 1491/451). And, four years later, Chatfield sold it to Edward P. Wadsworth (MLR 1612/53). It appears that Wadsworth may have then laid out Wadsworth Avenue and subdivided the land, in 1886 (Plan Book 49, Plan 39). Furthermore, it appears that the first block of Washington Avenue was also being subdivided at this time, as the lot for today's No. 786 Moody Street, on the corner of Moody and Washington, was sold by Wadsworth in 1885 to Aaron Martin, a machinist in the Watch Factory. Martin's National Register Queen Anne house was built soon after, as it appeared in the 1886 atlas.
In 1863, Charles Fry sold the southern part of his recently acquired lot to John E. Tolman (MLR 915/2), who flipped it to George Hastings in 1864 (MLR 923/424). The lot measured about 240 feet along Moody Street, and enclosed the area of first block of today's Washington Avenue. George Hastings was a watchmaker. Fry had already sold off the northern part of his lot to George Hastings, in 1862 (MLR 896/123). Hastings' northern lot was bounded by the American Watch Company on the north. This was part of the land included in the Doan Plan. It appears that these lots did not exactly align with a rectangular grid plan coming off Moody Street, since there were a whole bunch of subsequent deeds among Hastings, Fiske, and the American Watch Company for triangularly shaped lots in 1866 (MLR 994/470, 473, and 475; and 1148/228). In 1878, Sarah Hastings, George's widow, sold off the combined Hastings lot to William Chatfield (MLR 1491/451). And, four years later, Chatfield sold it to Edward P. Wadsworth (MLR 1612/53). It appears that Wadsworth may have then laid out Wadsworth Avenue and subdivided the land, in 1886 (Plan Book 49, Plan 39). Furthermore, it appears that the first block of Washington Avenue was also being subdivided at this time, as the lot for today's No. 786 Moody Street, on the corner of Moody and Washington, was sold by Wadsworth in 1885 to Aaron Martin, a machinist in the Watch Factory. Martin's National Register Queen Anne house was built soon after, as it appeared in the 1886 atlas.
Disposition of Deacon Joel Fuller's land on east of Moody Street: from Roxia (Fuller) Neal to Charles Fry, 1862, to George Hastings, 1862 and 1864, to William Chatfield, 1878, to Edward P. Wadsworth, 1882 (base map from OpenStreetMap).