Taken from the website, "Stop #25 on The Lafayette Trail
Description MIHP HA-1112, February 1977 (
visit link)
“The Vosbury House is a very attractive Gothic Revival cottage. It is characterized by many Queen Anne style features such as irregular massing, multiple roof lines, and the use of a variety of material. The latter characteristic is shown clearly in the main and porch gables; they are timbered with wood and faced with stucco and pebbles. Arthur Vosbury, a partner in the DuBois Lumber and Sash Mill of Havre de Grace, had the house built for his son; the fine workmanship and construction of this house, and the nearly identical Carver House next door, are attributed to the materials available to Vosbury through his business.” At the time of the inventory, this was owned by Mary C. Lambert.
This house and the one north it at 115 South Union Avenue are of the same style, a combination of Queen Anne and Stick Styles and there is also a family relationship between the two. Arthur Vosbury (1832-1889), and his wife, Joanna, built these homes as wedding presents for their two children, Nettie and Louis. This Vosbury House was built for Louis A. Vosbury (1865-1935) and his wife, Sadie; the Carver House was built for Nettie J. Vosbury (1859-1920), who married A. Hamlin Carver (1857-1943).
The Vosbury House was built by contractor George V. Mitchell but the architect was J. Edward Larkin (1831-1891), who also was an excellent railroad engineer with the PW&B Railroad in charge of bridges. Arthur Vosbury had purchased this lot in 1885 from John B. Coale (1818-1896), and the home was built by 1888 when the Vosburys deeded it to their son, Louis.
Arthur Vosbury was a successful businessman, banker, and manager of the Havre de Grace Branch of the New York DuBois Lumber Company, who came to Havre de Grace in 1866. In early years, logs were transported on rafts downriver to the local log pond. At the DuBois Mill (on the water at the foot of Fountain Street) the logs were used for building materials with even the rafts being taken apart for the lumber. Many structures in town, including these two houses, were framed from the trimmed logs.
In 1920, Louis and Sadie Vosbury sold the home to Michael H. Fahey (1865-1940) and his wife, Mary, who owned it for several years. Michael H. Fahey was a prominent lawyer and had been City Treasurer until Millard Tydings was appointed in 1907, and Fahey had a law practice with John A. Robinson. He also was Mayor from 1915-1917 and was President of the Harford County Agricultural and Breeders Association that ran The Graw Racetrack and was President of the Havre de Grace Hospital for many years. After the 1940 death of Michael H. Fahey, whose wife Mary predeceased him, the home was sold to Mary Fahey Clark in 1942.
The home passed to Clark/Leffler family members from then until 1976 when it went from the Estate of Mary Fahey Clark Leffler to Mary Clark Lambert, who was married to Rene A. Lambert (1930-2015). The Lamberts continued to own this home, while purchasing the house just north of it in 1982, to which they moved.
While Rene worked at the Aberdeen Proving Ground for many years, he volunteered his time to so many organizations that he was awarded a Key to the City of Havre de Grace in honor of his many years of dedicated service. Both he and Mary Lambert enjoyed historic home preservation and completed an extensive restoration of the original features and paint colors of this home as well as the one next door. In 1992, the Lamberts’ only daughter, Karen Lambert Gorsuch, and her husband, Scott Charles Gorsuch, purchased this home from Rene and Mary, preserving the family relationship between these two sister homes.
Sadly, in June 2015, juvenile arsonists set fire to the home, which destroyed the porches, the front of the house, and most of the south side up to the attic. In repairing the home, more than 60 percent of the windows had to be replaced with stained glass matching the original colors. The owners meticulously repaired the damage over 18 months, and succeeded in restoring the home’s original beauty and integrity. They received a 2017 Historic Preservation Award from the Havre de Grace Historic Preservation Commission and continue to enjoy this beautiful home.
County Records
Built 1888. 3,606 sq ft. 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2.5 stories with unfinished basement, detached garage, 12,000 sq ft lot"