They say that the Goddard Mansion, completed in 1885, was one of the first of the grand homes built along the shoreline of Cape Elizabeth. At the time it was built, there was a summer hotel called The Cape Cottage still on a section of the property. The owner, John Goddard (1811-1870), was in the lumber business and was also a colonel in the 1st Maine Regiment during the Civil War but saw no action. Later, the home was bought by the US Army and housed married soldiers and their families of nearby Ft. Williams. Over the years, I've taken quite a few rolls of black and white in and around this rambling structure. A trip to Ft. Williams was never really complete without a journey through these ruins. You used to be able to walk right in and around the various rooms and levels, but on this latest trip the doorways had been fenced off and locked. Down behind, there are a myriad of pathways that all end up overlooking the ocean, via a WWII gun placement, that helped protect the fort and harbor. These 'bones' of this great home are quite a relic of a bygone era.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Mansion
They say that the Goddard Mansion, completed in 1885, was one of the first of the grand homes built along the shoreline of Cape Elizabeth. At the time it was built, there was a summer hotel called The Cape Cottage still on a section of the property. The owner, John Goddard (1811-1870), was in the lumber business and was also a colonel in the 1st Maine Regiment during the Civil War but saw no action. Later, the home was bought by the US Army and housed married soldiers and their families of nearby Ft. Williams. Over the years, I've taken quite a few rolls of black and white in and around this rambling structure. A trip to Ft. Williams was never really complete without a journey through these ruins. You used to be able to walk right in and around the various rooms and levels, but on this latest trip the doorways had been fenced off and locked. Down behind, there are a myriad of pathways that all end up overlooking the ocean, via a WWII gun placement, that helped protect the fort and harbor. These 'bones' of this great home are quite a relic of a bygone era.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Great shot of what was once a grand place. It would be interesting to see your favorite B&W study of the house.
ReplyDeleteSpeakin' of relics of a bygone era...I'm putting this on my to-do list!!
ReplyDeleteI think Dad and I took a jaunt over there once with the boys...I remember it being open then, free to walk in and out..ah.. those were the days...