Demolition Begins On Penacook's Historic Beede House

CONCORD, NH — The historic Beede House on Washington Street in Penacook is being demolished after many years of contentious neighborhood meetings and failed plans attempting to save the structure. The Beede House, constructed in 1850, joins a long list of historic buildings, such as the Boston & Maine Train Station on Storrs Street, demolished in the 1960s, the Conant, Kimball, and Morrill elementary schools about a decade ago, and St. Peter's Church earlier this year, that have been knocked down in the city. The demolition began Tuesday.

The home was owned by the Beede family, who were the owners of the Beede Electrical Instruments company on Village Street, a manufacturing company that produced industrial electrical products for nearly a century in Penacook.

The building is own by the American Legion Post 31 which had originally planned to demolish the building in 2016, in order to construct a new post a few doors down from Penacook Square. The post acquired the property in 2002, according to the city's assessing online database.

About a year later after receiving the first demolition approval, garages on the property were demolished. But attempts were made to create a rehabilitation plan and alternative use for the building. Estimates to rehab the building were in the $2 million range, according to the Concord Monitor.

During the past year, there have been a number of complaints about the building, including squatters and criminal, while other neighbors worried about traffic and parking issues that might come with an alternative use for the building.

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