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David Ames Jr. House

HISTORY

Designed by Chauncey Shepard in 1826 for David Ames Jr. 241 Maple Street was one of the first houses on Maple Street hill. It was meant to be a larger and more impressive version of Alexander House.

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David Ames Jr. House in 1826

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David Ames Jr. in 2011

THREAT

The Ames House was severely damaged from the 2011 Tornado that did significant damage to dozens of historic buildings in this area. Its iconic two-story front porch is now missing. A temporary roof has been in place since the tornado with no sign that repairs are going to be made to this very significant building.

REUSE

The current owner of the properties, a foreign investor, is running a school on the former MacDuffie premises and considers it his “pet” project, committed to seeing it succeed. City officials are expected to meet with the owner’s representative in Spring 2020 to discuss redevelopment plans and possible financial assistance from the City’s Disaster Recovery Program (FEMA tornado funds) for the renovation of the buildings. As one of the more significant historic houses of Springfield, it is imperative that the Ames House be restored to its former appearance.

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