History of CAT-TV’s Home..

Bennington’s Past lends itself to CAT-TV’s Future

By: Anne Bugbee

In 1866, Nelson Thayer sold his farm and brickyard on Beech Street and for the princely sum of $1,350.00, purchased land and buildings from Lyman Patchin on East Main St., present day site of 625 Main Street. The buildings were small one-story affairs, which he consolidated and moved back from the street to the west end of the lot. He eventually sold the small buildings to a Mr. Gibson and began work on his own house.

The house that Mr. Thayer built, a transitional Federal-Greek revival, reflects the values of a middle-class Victorian businessman. The parquet floors were probably black walnut and the transom over the east window in the entrance hall is of stain glass, a popular choice of decor. Set into the fireplace mantle piece, in what may have been the morning room or dining room, is a large beveled mirror. Across the alcoves in this room and the front room, hang delicate decorative, spindle work. Some of the bricks used in the upper part of the foundation and in the chimneys came from the Thayer brickyard. There is evidence that there may have been a cistern in the cellar because indoor plumbing was certainly a possibility. To the rear of the house there is a large carriage house now used as a garage.

The Thayers had four daughters and two sons. One of the sons was killed in the Civil War. Sometime between 1874 and 1875, the year Nelson Thayer died and his wife Lucretia inherited the property, Mr. Henry Dewey deeded a triangular piece of land to her to straighten out the boundaries. Mr. Dewey's home was the next house to the east.

Lucretia Thayer lived at 625 Main Street until 1885 when she sold the property to Alexander K. Ritchie for $3,500.00, a thousand dollar profit. Mr. Ritchie and his family (he is the same merchant who built the Ritchie block) lived in the house for 30 years. In 1915 Daniel B. Keeler became the new owner. His son, Daniel J. Keeler, purchased the house from his father’s estate that same year. Daniel J. Keeler’s daughter, Margaret Keeler Wallace, recalls that when she was a girl, the house was painted yellow. She also remembers a Mrs. Hathaway, who played the piano, lived in the house set back from the street that had been owned by Mr. Gibson. In the house in front of Mrs. Hathaway’s lived Mrs. Harry Emery, a Awidow lady who supported herself by making and selling donuts. Mrs. Emery's dining room floor was slanted and she allowed young Margaret Keeler to roller skate down the slope. On Sundays Mrs. Emery would read the Boston Globe and let Margaret read the Globe funny pages while sharing a large bowl of popcorn.

It was Daniel Keeler who, in 1945, sold the house and carriage barn to Dash and Helen Gibney. Dash Gibney established his funeral business on the ground floor and his residence on the upper floor. Mrs. Helen Gibney sold the house and barn to CAT-TV in 2002.

No longer a family home, the house that Mr. Thayer built one hundred and thirty six years ago still stands today. Unlike many older houses in town that are razed to accommodate new structures, 625 Main Street has a new life and identity as CAT-TV studio and offices. The past is preserved while serving the future and Victorian elegance is blended with modern technology.

Note: Some of the information in this article came from a letter written by Margaret Keeler Wallace to Helen Gibney, dated August 2000.