Grand Boston townhouse kept original architectural details

When the building permit was filed Jan. 1, 1886, to construct a townhouse at 367 Beacon St. in the Back Bay, owner Arthur Lithgow Devens had engaged the architectural firm of Rotch and Tilden.

The house would comprise brick and stone with brownstone trim, a brick cornice and a brick pediment with four stories in front and five stories in the rear. It would be heated by a hot air furnace, according to the application.

Devens had graduated from Harvard in 1874 and married Agnes Elwood, the sister of one of his Harvard classmates, Dec. 27, 1876.

At the time he built their home he was a member of the Boston Stock Exchange with his company Devens, Lyman & Company. 

He went on to become the vice president of the stock exchange, vice president of Cape Cod Canal Company, director of Utah Apex Mining Company, treasurer of the Republican Club and president of the Somerset Club of Boston.

In 1925, the home was changed from a single-family home to a two-family dwelling. At that time, the architect was Maurice M. Osborne. Mrs. C.M. Cabot was listed as the owner.

When an application was filed in October 1983 to return the home to a single-family home, the building department also granted permission to replace the kitchen cabinets and do some electrical work. During the next few years new plumbing and tile were added to the bathrooms.

The single-family home is now on the market, and Richard Giglio, Diane Davidson and their team member Sharyn Hopkins of Keller Williams Realty Boston Metro have listed this grand home at $3.95 million.

Its 12 rooms and 7,989 +/- square feet boast five bedrooms, five full baths, three kitchens, a formal living room, a formal dining room, seven fireplaces and a full basement.

The dining room is stunning with its boxed bay windows, high ceiling, abundant moldings and handsome fireplace with a tile surround.

There are also two adjacent parking spaces. 

A cast iron fence surrounds the front yard of the home, and the garden includes rhododendron, ilex, hydrangea, hosta, roses and a Japanese magnolia.

The brick home has a wide bay on the first two floors. The pediment above the front door highlights an oval window at its top center.

Inside, the foyer between the two front doors has a black and white marble floor and wainscoting painted white. The front door window, the pediment oval window and a hanging ceiling light illuminate the vestibule. 

The second front door (with a transom window above that frames the oval front window) opens to the entry hall. Its tray ceiling has wide crown molding. 

The center reception hall with a chandelier and center medallion is outstanding and includes a graceful staircase.

The hallway rises three steps just before widening at the door to the living quarters, then passes a coat closet and the door to the elevator and ends at a door that leads to the basement.

The first floor of the home is the entertaining space. The door from the entry hall opens to a large reception room where a chandelier hangs from a center medallion. 

A graceful staircase on the east side leads from the room. Folding doors with two panels on either side of a wide doorway open to the beautiful oval living room that includes the front bay of the home, and wide crown molding follows the curve of the room. 

Three large windows in the bow give views up and down Beacon Street. The floors are of narrow boards of hardwood. The mantelpiece around the fireplace is magnificent. It is white carved marble that includes Della Robbia swags, angels, a unicorn and a carved figure on each side. 

The large dining room is at the back of this level. A boxed bay at the end of the room has three large south facing windows and two others that face east and west. 

The paneled walls of the dining room include a hidden door to the kitchen on the right. A fireplace with a surround of painted tiles is on the opposite wall.

The family room is located on the third level of this home and features a black and tan marble mantelpiece and built-in shelving.

A chandelier hangs from a center ceiling medallion, and wide crown molding circles the room, which also features a chair rail and picture moldings. The door to the back stairwell is on the fireplace side of the room, and the door to the butler’s pantry is across from it.

The first section of the kitchen has a large window and charming cabinets with brass latches. They include a wide shallow pantry on one side and floor and wall cabinets on the other. 

Cove lighting is above the wall cabinets. This section has the cooking area. The second section is a butler’s pantry. The wall cabinets there are paneled in clear glass.

The next level of the home has a library with two large windows, built-in bookcases and a beautiful fireplace with a mantelpiece of black marble veined in tan.

Next to the library is a small bedroom. A full bath has wainscoting of white tile, small octagonal floor tiles in white with navy blue accents. The sink is set into a beautiful piece of furniture.  

The study or library has a beautiful fireplace with a black and tan marble mantelpiece, flanked by built-in bookcases.

The master bedroom on this level includes the front bay, a fireplace and a huge walk-in closet and dressing room that can be closed off by a glass door. The en suite full master bathroom is marble in black and white.

The third level of the home has a family room with black and tan marble mantelpiece and built-in cabinets and shelving, a bedroom with fireplace, a bath, a laundry room, and a galley kitchen. 

Two more bedrooms with fireplaces, two baths and a walk-in closet are on the fourth level. The fifth level holds a bedroom, a galley kitchen and a roof deck.

DETAILS

Address: 367 Beacon St., Back Bay

BR/BA: Five bedrooms, five baths

Size: 7,989 +/- square feet

Age: 1886; 1925; 1983

Price: $3.95 million 

Taxes: $43,518 (FY 2011)

Features of the home: Beautiful oval formal living room and paneled formal dining room; seven fireplaces; many elegant original details; first floor kitchen and butler’s pantry; galley kitchens on third and fifth floors; lovely tile in each of the full baths; elevator; full basement; great storage; two deeded parking spaces behind the home.

Close by: Shops, galleries and restaurants of Newbury Street and the Back Bay; Copley Square and Boston Public Library; easy access to MBTA Green Line at Hynes Convention Center or Copley Square, Routes 90 and 93 and airport tunnels.

Contact: Richard Giglio, Diane Davidson or Sharyn Hopkins, Keller Williams Realty-Boston Metro, 607 Boylston St., Suite 500, Boston, MA 02116. Phones: 617-542-0012 (office), 617-861-3602 (Giglio cell), 617-861-3613 (Davidson cell) or 617-869-0801 (Hopkins cell).

Website: www.kwBostonMetro.com  

This property may be seen by appointment.