Like its neighbor at 40 Oriole, the Hambly House was designed by prominent architect Frederick Field in 1898. The layout of the house mirrors its neighbor; however, the exterior is decidedly Queen Anne and Colonial Revival. The house is rich with embellishments, such as the formal entrance porch with recessed statuary niches, and the three-story octagonal tower. Hambly was the treasurer of the Quidnick Manufacturing Company of Coventry, but his offices were located in downtown Providence along Westminster Street.
The house was later occupied by Max Silverstein – a magazine and newspaper distributor – and his family from 1918-1945. The Silversteins’ sold the house to Charles W. Freeman and his wife Clara. The Freeman family lived in the house for only a year, but an interesting note is that Charles and Clara’s son, Charles Jr., was later President Nixon’s interpreter on his Chinese adventure. Charles Sr. was in real estate. The house was sold to Benjamin DeGroot, who was in the appliance and television sales business.
The current owners have lived in the Hambly House since 2000. They have overseen extensive remodeling and restoration throughout most of their time here, beginning with the removal of insensitive and dated additions, such as shag carpeting and multicolor paneling. The kitchen was remodeled in 2011 – designed by the homeowners – and matched closely to the layout of the original kitchen. The ground floor powder room was also remodeled during this time. In 2015, the owners restored the dining room, exposing original quarter-sawn oak paneling.
— Festival of Historic Houses Guidebook, 2019
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