[From the 2024 Holiday Magazine]
Meagan and Will, her husband, purchased the beautiful residence at 18 Park Place in 2011. “I was immediately attracted to the house because of its architectural details,” shared Will. Typical of the Italianate style, popular between 1840-1885, the residence features a square tower, wide over-hanging eaves with decorative brackets, a wrap-around porch with turned wood balustrades and chamfered columns, paired front doors, two-story bay windows, and tall narrow windows.
The house is on the former land of John Clarke, who lived at 42 Circular Street and was the first to bottle and ship Saratoga’s spring water across the United States and Europe. Clarke bequeathed his land to his two sons and his son-in-law, Isaac T. Thayer, who was married to his daughter Eliza. Thayer acquired the vacant lot of 18 Park Place. Following Thayer’s death in 1852, the property was passed to his wife’s daughter by her first marriage, Louisa Maxwell. Maxwell sold the property in 1866 to Eugene Reeves.
According to the 1870 United States Census, Eugene was identified as half Indian and a bow and arrow maker. His wife Sarah was a basket maker. The 1867 and1868 tax rolls list Eugene Reeves paying taxes on one lot and four huts. The following year it shows that he paid taxes on one lot and house. On December 8, 1871, the Reeves, whose listed address on the deed was Quebec, Canada, sold the property to Walter Jennery.
On October 13, 1873, Jennery, a retail grocer who lived at the Broadway House, sold the property to Augustus Bockes, a prominent attorney and judge who lived at the northeast corner of Circular Street and Park Place, and David Winans, a wealthy, retired merchant who resided at 66 Franklin Street. The 1876 Louis H. Cramer Atlas shows vacant land at 18 Park Place. Two years later, Winans built the house that stands today in a style that was somewhat similar to his house at 66 Franklin Street that was designed by prominent architect J.D. Stevens. He and his wife, Sarah, resided in the house for six years.
In 1884, William Moser, a wealthy Prussian-born fur merchant who lived at 432 Fifth Avenue in New York City, purchased 18 Park Place. Moser had two sons with his first wife, Marie, William Jr. and Frederick. Moser’s combined net worth in 1870 was $390,000, equivalent to $9,387,000 today. In 1873, he married Helen, who was 22 years younger than him. Together they had two children, Edith and Arthur. A year after acquiring 18 Park Place, Moser passed away. Helen and her family continued to spend summers at the residence. In 1905, Helen passed away. A dispute arose between siblings, Arthur and Edith, regarding the estate. The court ordered 18 Park Place to be sold at public auction. Arthur, who was living in London at the time was the highest bidder, acquiring the property for $4,100 in 1907. The following year, he sold the property to Joseph P. McGirr.
Meagan is a local dentist, originally from St. Louis. After graduating from Kenyon College with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology, she returned to St. Louis and worked for two years with her father, an orthodontist, during which time she decided to pursue a career in dentistry. She attended the University of Missouri – Kansas City, where she met Will, a fellow student who was born in Missoula, Montana and for a period of time grew up in Kansas City. Together they moved to the Bronx to complete their residencies at Lincoln Medical Center. Afterwards, Meagan worked as a dentist in and around the city while Will completed his two-year endodontic residency at University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, now Rutgers University.
In 1909, Joseph McGirr, an Irish immigrant, founded J.P. McGirr & Co., a retailer of dry goods, women’s furnishings, and millinery store on Broadway. He and his wife Jennie had four sons – James Raymond, John Earl, Joseph Paul, and Frank W. Jennie passed away in 1913. McGirr and his four sons continued to reside at 18 Park Place. A Saratogian article dated June 7, 1930, described McGirr as “one of the outstanding merchants in this locality.” All four sons were involved with the business. Following Joseph McGirr’s passing on September 21, 1930, the sons transferred the title of the house to McGirr & Co. and rented the house to others including Bernard Kaufman who operated Kaufman House, a rooming house, from 1934 until 1940.
Matilda W. Morrow and her family purchased the property in 1944 and resided in the house for 20 years. In 1964, Robert and Catherine Blackburn of Brooklyn bought the house and used it as a summer residence and briefly operated it as Robert’s Guest House. After several different owners, the current owners, Meagan and Will Lyons purchased the house from Maureen Curtin in 2011.
Upon Will completing his endodontic residency, he and Meagan were considering where to move. They were seriously contemplating Vermont, when Casey Walker, Will’s childhood friend from Montana who was living in Troy, suggested they consider Saratoga Springs. “We immediately fell in love the quaintness of Saratoga Springs,” said Meagan. “It took us several years to find the perfect house,” Will shared.
While the exterior attracted Meagan and Will to the house, the interior needed significant work. “Will was all in, but with two young boys, ages 3 and 1, I was skeptical of all the work the house needed,” continued Meagan. Rooms had dropped ceilings, linoleum tile floors, and unattractive fluorescent lighting. The kitchen was small and needed to be updated. The decorative moldings were missing in several rooms. However, being able to walk downtown helped to sway Meagan that it was the right house to raise their family.
“It became a labor of love,” said Meagan. Over time, Meagan and Will restored the exterior and renovated the interior to meet their needs, enlarging the kitchen and converting one of the bedrooms into a bathroom. They kept as many of the original details of the house as possible, including the original plaster moldings, wood floors, doors, and windows. “My father instilled in me a love for old houses and their details,” shared Meagan. “When the dropped ceiling was removed from the dining room, we discovered that the original plaster medallion was missing and chose to restore it and the other moldings that were missing,” said Will. They have replaced the roof; installed new wiring, plumbing, and HVAC system; and restored the stone foundation, removing the inappropriate cement parging. “We can’t thank our friend Casey Walker, an architect/contractor, enough for not only suggesting Saratoga Springs as a place to live, but also his guidance and hard work,” said Will.
They finished the basement to give their sons John and Dylan a place to watch movies and play games as well as a space to workout. “The gym equipment was delivered the day everything shut down due to Covid. It was perfect timing,” added Will. Not long after, their son Joe arrived.
“While the projects never end, it has been the right house for our three sons, two dogs, and two cats,” said Meagan. “It is perfect for celebrating the holidays.” Cheers to Meagan and Will for your efforts to preserve 18 Park Place!
