Have you ever stopped and looked at the houses in your neighborhood…we mean, really looked?

Well, local artist and streetscape curator Matthew Dickey is constantly looking for interesting homes, buildings, and architecture in the Boston area. He has over 38,000 followers on Instagram, and his feed is filled with gorgeous photos of homes tucked away in neighborhoods, plus their history.

This tiny home located in Southie was captured by Dickey.  It’s under 13 feet wide and sits on just 375 square feet of land with 650 square feet of living space. According to the Instagram post, this N Street home could be more than 130 years old. 

“A building was first on this plot as early as 1884. Looking at early maps, it appears to have been an auxiliary building for a larger home on 8th Street. However, by 1891 it was given its own address. City documents claim the current building was built in 1950, but those can’t be trusted. I bet it’s older. Southie houses many mysteries. Bike for scale.” 

Dickey can be seen traveling by bike in and around Boston on the hunt for hidden architectural gems. In addition to photography and historic research, Dickey creates gorgeous paintings from his discoveries.

According to a profile in the Boston Globe, this isn’t just a hobby. Dickey is the communications director for the Boston Preservation Alliance, a nonprofit that works to preserve historic buildings, landscapes, and communities.  He also hopes to influence how Boston views its architectural gems and to save them before they disappear. (Amrheins building is on the BPA’s radar! )

Evidently, one of the oldest three-deckers in Boston – located in Dorchester near South Bay which he discovered doing research – was demolished last year before he could photograph it. Well, that’s a shame! 

If you’d like to learn more, Dickey was recently on CBS Boston on Morning Mix, talking about art, Boston, and preservation.  You can watch it here! 

Make sure to follow him on Instagram – he’s a delightful follow! 

2 Comments

  1. Him Saying… November 25, 2022 at 10:22 am - Reply

    …”Southie houses many mysteries”…in the middle of a story about Southie ‘houses’….is, at best, incredibly annoying (if not utterly uninspired).

    Harrumph.

  2. Bob Healey November 25, 2022 at 10:45 am - Reply

    Was born directly across the street at 195 N st . The building to the right was Nate’s variety store. I was born in 48 , I think that house was there long before that .

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