Elm Street Between High Street and York Street- South Side

Sanborn 1886 Map:

1879 Bird's Eye View:

This block has been poorly documented. For the most part, the older buildings were rarely recorded with little information, although by their design and eccentricities, they appeared early. They can all be seen, covered with storefronts, here. The older wooden houses on the High Street side of the block were demolished for the Peabody Museum. The earlier houses can be seen here and here, all typical Federal and Colonial designs. The museum will be discussed on High Street. The entire block was demolished in 1916 for the construction of Branford and Saybrook colleges.

148 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1916

Built for: ?, 1790-1830s?
An interesting three bay, gable front house. Uniquely, it had a central bay entrance with a Tuscan porch rather than a side entrance. The gable was steep enough that two windows were wedged in, also unexpected. It can be seen here and here.

154 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1916

Built for: ?, 1790-1830s?
Two story houses were a real rarity in New Haven, and this seems to have been a good example. It is likely, given its small proportions, something only shared with the oldest houses in the city, that it may actually have been an 18th century house.

156 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1916

Built for: ?, 1810-1830s?
Though a rather typical gable front, three bay Federal house, the odd, elongated diamond window in the gable was indeed unique in the city, and such a diamond gable window was only seen on a couple houses in the city, one of which survives on Trumbull Street.

160 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1916

Built for: ?, 1790-1810s?
Definitely a Federal Style five bay house, it seems to have been converted to commercial use rather early on, erasing the first floor. 

Block Survival Rate: 0/4: 0%

Elm Street Between High Street and College Street- North Side

Sanborn 1886 Map:

1879 Bird's Eye View:

The demolition of this block occurred in two phases. The left side was torn down in the 1890s for the buildings of the Berkeley Oval. The right side was demolished in 1929 for Calhoun College.

Yale Theological School
Status: Demolished, 1929
Built for: Yale Univeristy, 1869-71, by Rufus Russell
The Divinity School was one of Rufus Russell's masterpieces, bearing much of the same mass and Gothic styling as the high school on Orange Street. It was built in four stages, with the right most block being constructed first, the second right most block, the Marquand Chapel being constructed next, the left most block third, replacing a five bay federal house, seen here, and finally the second to the left block which enclosed the courtyard. The general design was divided into a first floor with large pointed windows, two floors of simple brick, and the fourth floor with stone banding and carved panels corresponding to the bays of windows. The tall mansard featured large dormers and decorative chimneys with iron anchors. The corner on College Street had a tower emerging diagonally from the facade, like the Orange Street school, overhanging an interesting triangular balcony. The Marquand chapel was a gem, if over decorated for its size. Every element of the facade had a pointed gable and tall windows, with a rose window over the main entrance and heavily carved stone Gothic features and engaged columns. The final addition had a large five light window with slightly more elaborate detailing than the rest of the building. The whole was a fine essay in Victorian Gothic until its demolition for Calhoun College in 1929.

109 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1892

Built for: Atwater Treat, 1841
This was one of New Haven's high style Greek Revival row house designs, built by a builder. It featured a strong piano nobile, accentuating the second floor with no porch on the first. The house was brick with slightly pedimented and molded lintels in marble rather than brownstone. The top featured a heavy Doric entablature with a balustrade above alternating between solid wood panels and panels of Greek iron work. It can be seen here.

115 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1892

Built for: ?, 1790-1820?
115 and 121 were essentially identical Federal Style, five bay, ridge front houses with Tuscan columned porches around the entrances. The street would have more of them if the Divinity School had not been built.

117 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1892

Built for: Lyman Ives, 1841

A nice Italianate three bay house with a full porch running across the front with Temple of the Winds columns. This house can only be seen in one photograph. It's very close in form to two houses on Elm Street at the corner of Orange Street, seen here.

121 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1892

Built for: Nathan Beers, 1790-1820?
Almost the same as 115. The large empty space that runs to High Street was a carriage factory.

Block Survival Rate: 0/5: 0%

Elm Street Between York Street and High Street- North Side

Sanborn 1886 Map:

1879 Bird's Eye View:

This block remained substantially intact until the construction of the Yale Gym in 1890 and then the demolition of the entire block in 1928 for the construction of Trumbull College which currently occupies the site.

Yale Gym-Wikimedia

155 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1928

Built for: Eneas Monson, 1799
This five bay, ridge front house, built for a surgeon in 1799, follows the New Haven pattern of having a palladian window in the center bay under an open pediment, although the entablature over the window was more robust than other examples such as the one surviving example at 77 Elm. It also had the typical open pediment porch with Tuscan columns. The house can be seen here and here.

Wikimedia

145 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1889

Built for: Shepard Monson, 1825
This generous three bay Greek Revival house with an impressive ell with a full porch and roof balustrade was built for Shepard Monson, next door to his father, Eneas' older house. It had an extensive garden and was demolished in 1899 for the Yale Gymnasium.

137-9 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1928

Built for: ?, 1820s-30s?
These two houses were fine examples of New Haven's ubiquitous three bay Greek Revival houses, complete with Ionic porches and dentils in the entablature. These were demolished for Trumbull College in 1928.

Wikimedia

135 Elm Street

Status: Demolished, 1928

Built for: Elam Hull, 1830
A late Federal Style house, it was built around 1830 for Elam Hull with a typical, and rather broad, Federal Tuscan porch, a brick facade with brownstone lintels, and guttae under the cornice. The windows in the picture below were added in the late 19th century. The house was the Yale Publishing House until its demolition for Trumbull College.

Yale Alumni

Block Survival Rate: 0/4: 0%