An excellent example of the immigrants who came to work on the estates – and whose descendants populate modern Lenox.
L.C. Peters, one of 10 children, left Kent, England in 1870, when he was 20, to look for work in the United States. His first stop was Troy, NY where he had family and became part of the work crew that came to Lenox to build Ethelwynd. A skilled carpenter, he saved, and had, after four years, enough to bring over his fiancée, Martha Barnes and they raised three children to adulthood in Lenox.
He eventually bought the former Trinity Church on Church St.
He ran an antiques, fine furniture store in the Tudor Revival building he built on Walker. Known as the Peters Block (Talbots today), it had an apartment above.
He moved what had been Williams Tavern at Triangle Park to old Stockbridge Road and enlarged the facility to be a rooming house for secretaries and others who worked on the estates. Today it is the Rookwood Inn.
He had a barn (near current site of Haven). He was a founder of Lenox Savings Bank and had become a distinguished local citizen.
He died in 1928 and is buried at Church on the Hill with his wife, children and some of his grandchildren.
Mr. L.C. Peters is my Gr-Gr-Grandfather. After many years of research I found that he was a very interesting man. Born the youngest son of ten children, he and all but one brother emigrated from England in 1862 as an 18yr old. His father and grandfather were wood workers, furniture makers, iron work and in the construction business. They also were successful business men. They helped to develop the Village of Kennington, Kent including their own home, the church expansion and school building among others. Mr. L.C. Peters was born and raised to be a great craftsman. I am currently trying to tie him to the construction or finishing of Ventfort Hall. He resided just 5 lots away from the then JP Morgan construction site. I truly believe that he had to have been involved in some way.
With all that I have learned about this distant relative of mine, the more I want to know and wish that I could sit and have afternoon tea with him.
Definitely! Buried at Church on the Hill in Lenox and descendants still living in Lenox today
We have two book cases at our home on Old Stockbridge Road that were built by Mr. Peters – we’re trying to find out if another set of shelves may have been built by Mr. Peters. Any ideas how to run this down?