Destruction on North Street; The Manor Inn vs. the Tank

It was a house like no other Medfield had ever seen; a mansion of seismic proportions. Its destruction 50 years ago this April, in a war-like assault by a 24-ton M-19A Army tank, is an event likely never to be repeated.  

It is uniquely Medfield.  It was Col. Mitchell’s Manor, later known as the Manor Inn. It stood where today’s stands on North Street. It was owned by Medfield’s wealthiest resident, Col. Edwin V. Mitchell, owner of the second largest hat factory in the United States, which was tucked in across North Street where today’s is located.  In 1898, Mitchell remodeled and enlarged the original house at the sensational cost for those days of $90,000.

He named the mansion “Akkompoin”—the brother of Massasoit, who had welcomed the Pilgrims to Plymouth. The town showcase contained 32 rooms. It had a library with a huge fireplace and mahogany paneling, a music room and a large dining room.  On the second floor were 11 bedrooms. The third floor, like the first, was built as a scene of splendor. Here was the combined playroom and ball room. Inlaid on the floor of this arena, which could hold up to 800 people, were designs for hopscotch, checkers and backgammon.  Originally, the property extended back to Vinald Road. The grounds of the meticulously landscaped lot included a tennis court, carriage sheds and a barn.

Upon the death of Col. Mitchell in 1917, the property remained in the family until it was sold to Clinton Frost and turned into a hotel. Because of its elaborate décor, it catered to a wealthy cliental.  The passage of the 18th Amendment and the Volstead Act in 1919 all but doomed the liquor dispensing phase of the hotel business. From 1919 to 1933 and the passage of the 21stAmendment, the building was unoccupied. With the repeal of prohibition, the property was purchased by John Coyle, who reopened the former mansion under the name  “Manor Inn.” Under his management, the business flourished with his lobster and steak dinners known throughout the area. With its 800 person capacity hall on the third floor, it also became a mecca for wedding receptions. 

In 1950, upon the death of John Coyle, the property was left to nephew Peter Gately, who changed the Manor Inn to a tavern only. In 1961 he sold the property to the North Street Plaza Corp, who in turn wanted to demolish the historic mansion and build in its place a small strip mall which would be anchored by a restaurant.

 In order to demolish a building of the magnitude of the Manor Inn, it was decided to bring in a tank to do the destruction.  On a cool April morning, over 1,000 Medfield residents lined North Street and all areas around the Manor Inn. It was a war-time battle between the historic house and the tank. After the first tank assault on the house, the operation had to stop, an early victory for the house, as with all the preparation they overlooked shutting off the electricity. After an hour delay, the tank began a 7-hour battle on the Medfield Landmark. Darkness fell on the first day, with the house still standing. Round two began at 1 p.m. Sunday and continued with another day-long assault. Night closed on this session with the Manor Inn still standing, although severely shaken.  Crowds continued to swell the site with residents jockeying for the best ringside position.

On Monday, day three, the skies opened up with a thunderous downpour. The tank, now assisted by a relief bulldozer, began its final onslaught. The tactic was effective and the once mighty town showcase was now no more than a shattered mass in the dirt of North Street. The Mansion of Mitchell, turned luxury hotel and finally tavern, a unique piece of Medfield’s history and architect, a building that was on par with the mansions of Newport, was now gone for all time. A sad chapter of how much of Medfield’s special past, an aspect that makes Medfield, Medfield, has been needlessly destroyed by demolition.

Editor's note: The strip mall that replaced the historic Manor Inn was in turn demolished when the current post office was built in 1998.