Our notion of “the block” includes 10 houses, two of which actually front on Oak Street. At least six of the houses were built as part of an Owen Burns subdivision in the 1920s, while two houses were moved here from other locations.

The Owen Burns subdivision included four duplexes(5l2 / 516 517/ 527) and two starter homes (537/543). This same subdivision also included four starter homes on

Columbia Court (534/ 535 /542 /543), one block away. The starter homes on both Madison and Columbia Court are identical to those found at Burns Court further west, with some street variation.

The duplexes were identical on the interior, with only minor differences in the street appearance. Three of these residences are now single family. 512 became a single family residence first, followed by 516 in the 1980s. 517 is still in the process today.

I am told that the starter homes were intended for young families, while the duplexes were for retirees who could then derive income from half the house, primarily renting out the other half to select winter visitors. The neighborhood, at that time referred to as “Morrill – Mound,” declined seriously in the 1960s, but most of the residents of our

block stayed on in their houses (quite a few were senior citizens that point.)

Several people moved here in the 1980s and are still here. All of the houses mentioned have largely retained their original street appearance with the exception of 537, though most have undergone significant changes in the interior.

Of the ten houses on our block, the residents (owners) of five have lived here more than twenty years (one since 1947), three have lived here just under a decade, and only two are recent additions. This represents a lot of stability for a neighborhood that has seen significant change in the past twenty years.

Written by Kate Lowman

Laurel Park News, Volume 19, Winter 2004