Charles Hammond Gibson (1874–1954)

Charles Hammond Gibson (21 November 1874 - 18 November 1954)

Boston writer and bachelor bon vivant, best known for having preserved his family's Beacon Street, Boston home as a museum.

Charles Hammond Gibson born 21 November 1874 in Boston, Massachusetts, parents were Charles Sr. Gibson and Catherine Hammond.

The lifelong bachelor, lived intermittently at 137 Beacon Street until his death in 1954, just four days before his eightieth birthday. In his obituary he describes himself as a “poet and horticulturist who delighted in being designated as a ‘proper Bostonian’”.

Although his poetry never attained the recognition he desired, he wrote prolifically and considered himself the “chief exemplar of the ode in letters”. He self-published only three books, Two Gentlemen in Touraine (1899) and Among French Inns (1907), and several volumes of poetry - The Spirit of Love and Other Poems (1906) with his “The Forty Steps” (composed four months after D-Day during World War II), which he frequently submitted to newspapers and published through vanity presses. Charles also served as the chairman of the Boston Authors Club of which he was a charter member.

In addition to his interest in writing, Charles dabbled in architecture, briefly attending MIT’s new School of Architecture on Boylston Street. His interest in architecture, his desire to preserve his family legacy, and his dream of being 'discovered' as a poet all motivated Charles to designate 137 Beacon Street as a Victorian house museum. Many people also came to his Nahant, East Point house to see his rose garden.