This West End home was built in 1873 by English immigrants Frederick Young and his wife Elizabeth. The couple lived at the home for about 10 years with their three children Emma, Lucy, and Fred. During this time, Frederick Young was a silver polisher at Gorham Manufacturing Company, then located on the shore of the Providence River in College Hill. Gorham Manufacturing Co. was one of the most successful silver manufacturers in the country, attracting prominent clients like First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln, the wife of President Abraham Lincoln, as well as First Lady Julia Boggs Grant, the wife of President Ulysses S. Grant.

After the Youngs left the home somewhere around 1883, 16 Carol Court was occupied by a number of tenants, including the machinist G. B. Bennett and Stephen A. Durfee, who both rented the home for eight years alongside others.

In 1921, Irish immigrant and laundress Mary Kelly bought the home and lived there with her husband Hugh Kelly, who like Frederick Young, was also a polisher — though we don’t know if he also worked for the Gorham company. The home wasn’t sold again until 1947.

In 2022-2023, this home was restored with managerial help from the Providence Revolving Fund. PPS spoke with owners Jennifer Hellmuth and Andrew Cormier in 2024 about the process and published a feature article on their story.

To read our complete 2024 historic house marker report for 16 Carol Court, click here.