Glimpse Of Victorian Era-This Day In Norwood History-June 19, 1975

Historical Society Opens Day House to Reveal the Life and Art of Eccentric Genius Fred Holland Day

Residents of Norwood and the area will be able to recapture the spirit of elegance of the Victorian era Sunday afternoon when the Day House is opened to the public. At the same time they will learn about one of Norwood‘s most interesting and eccentric figures, Fred Holland Day, the man who gives the house its unusual significance. The imposing English manor-type house on the corner of Bullard Street and Day Street is one of the last remaining mansions in the town. Now the headquarters of the Norwood Historical Society, the Day House preserves the flavor of the past and is furnished with many original Day family pieces and items of historic importance. It is one of two Norwood attractions listed in the Norfolk County Development and Tourist Council directory, the other building listed being the municipal building.

During the 2 to 5 p.m. open house, visitors will move back in time to a serene age that was sumptuously reflected in solid construction, rich fabrics and elegant furnishings. The Honduras mahogany paneling in the family dining room, the central Great Hall open to the third floor and 30 feet high, the beautiful fireplaces and charming balconied bedrooms are all historically important. It is unlikely that such family homes will ever again be built. Cost alone would rule them out. For instance, the Italian marble fireplace in the main parlor was installed at a cost of only $167 when Fred Holland Day remodeled the house in 1890. The story of the transformation of the house by Fred Holland Day is a fascinating footnote in local history. It was originally constructed as a white frame house by his father, Lewis Day, in 1859. Norwood was then part of Dedham and the area was a bucolic stretch of farming country; the Day property was known as the Bullard farm.

Fred Holland Day had a brilliant mind with literary and artistic leanings. Though his writings were never impressive or successful, he was one of the first American pictorial photographers, and he is mentioned in several histories of photography. Some of his prints are part of the collections of the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain and the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Last March Wellesley College presented a major exhibition of his photographic work. Visitors to the Day House will be able to see a small aspect of his work in the room that was his bedroom on the third floor. It is a series of seven pictures entitled “The Seven Last Words,” depicting Christ on the Cross. Fred Holland Day himself posed for the pictures, stretched on a cross and wearing a crown of thorns. They are striking pictures, filled with emotion. The photographs caused a scandal when they were first shown, many people considering them sacrilegious.

It is doubtful that the young man was affected by the opinions of his fellow townsmen. For several years much of his time was spent abroad, and he knew many of the most important celebrities in Europe and England. In this country he was friendly with the cigar-smoking poet Amy Lowell, who spent many days in his library poring over his collected manuscripts when she was writing her “Life of Keats.” However, he would never let her read the original Keats letters he had in his possession, according to local historical society members. The chair in which Amy Lowell sat is still in the room. Fred Holland Day was also a benefactor of Kahlil Gibran, author of “The Prophet.” The Norwood bachelor took the poverty-stricken youth under his wing, and they became close friends.

The white frame house was transformed in 1890 when the artistic native of Norwood returned from one of his European trips enthused with the idea of turning the old New England edifice into a majestic English manor house. He did it with a vengeance. The exterior was stuccoed and slatted in Tudor style. Magnificent leaded windows were installed. The Great Hall was opened to the third floor. A frieze placed over the hall fireplace was a reproduction of the Luca (the elder) Della Robbia frieze in the St. Maria del Fiore Cathedral in Florence, Italy. In his bedroom he installed a beautiful Delft tile fireplace. He renovated other fireplaces, giving the dining room fireplace a leather embossed wall covering above the hood.

Every room in the house has items of historical significance. Among the most charming are those preserved in the bedroom of Fred Holland Day‘s mother and in the children’s room. Old dolls and toys are displayed, and an old doll’s house on loan from the Children’s Museum in Jamaica Plain holds a delightful collection. The Day House, which became the property of the Norwood Historical Society in 1934, also has an ecumenical display featuring items from the town’s churches. An outstanding item on view is an old cupboard which was Norwood‘s first library. It still holds many of the original volumes. It was the property of the Rev. Jabez Chickering, who became minister of the south parish of Dedham, now Norwood, in 1769. It was his idea to lend books kept in the cupboard, thus creating the first local public library. Members of the historical society will explain the features of the mansion during the open house Sunday. There will be a nominal entrance fee.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger