On the northwest corner of North Adams and Ontario Streets was the residence of John H. and Loula Owens in 1916. John H. Owens (1864-1925) was the grandson of Captain Hazlett F. Owens (1800-1892), renowned for owning most of the land of Perryville during the early 19th century. John H. Owens served as one of the pallbearers at the Captain’s 1892 funeral. John and Loula Owens had a daughter, Beulah, who married Charles R. Buck. This home stayed in the Owens family from 1916 until 1945, when Beulah and Charles Buck sold it to Paul Gibson (1902-1985).

At the age of 14, Paul Gibson had left school and went to work at the Klair’s Store at 801 Ontario Street where he worked until 1940. He then went to work at the Edgewood Arsenal as a civilian employee in the Fire Department and in 1946 he married Mary Elizabeth Werner the year after he bought this beautiful home.

As a child Paul had begun using some of his spare time to carve decoys; he also fished and hunted, all at the age of 13. He carved in the Havre de Grace style, but made the bodies and tails of his birds thicker than usual and gave them shorter necks. Though he did not carve in quantity, Paul earned the reputation of being a quality decoy maker among the carvers of the Susquehanna Flats (such as Bob McGaw and Sam Barnes) with swans his specialty. In the early 1940s he bought the lathe of R. Madison Mitchell, on which he turned the bodies, and increased his production of decoys. Paul is also known to have built a boat in his back yard. Having the long, two-story workshop that remains on this property probably helped greatly.

Paul Gibson always signed, ''Paul Gibson, Maker and Painter, Havre de Grace, Md" to indicate that only he had worked on them. His large workbench sat under two big windows in his workshop that gave natural light to his work. He had separate areas for his saw mill and iron working shop. His paint loft was a level above, with drying racks, and heated by a wood stove. And, in memory of his many years working at the Edgewood Arsenal Fire Department from which he retired in 1965, he had his fire chief's uniform hanging there in the loft of his workshop.

Jimmy Frey, another carver, was introduced to Paul Gibson by Frey’s Uncle Buddy Gunther in 1978 and his style was greatly influenced by Gibson. Jimmy Frey eventually worked for Paul for five years before Paul passed away in 1985. Another carver, George Hendricks, who had worked with Paul, continued to carve using Paul’s patterns and the Mitchell lathe after Paul died. He then sold the decoys to help Mary Gibson. At some point after the death of Paul Gibson the house was divided into two residences, no doubt to help Mary financially. Neighbors remember Mary for speaking fondly of Paul even years after his death but also for regularly sweeping the street in front of their house with a broom at almost 90 years of age.

After the death of Mary Gibson in 2004, this house was purchased by Dr. David Jaffe and his family. Between then and August 2019 when the Jaffes sold it, they returned it to being a single family home and while they updated it extensively they were careful to retain the charm and character of this old home. Paul Gibson’s 16’ by 20’ two-story workshop remains solid at the end of the garden. The new owner of this attractive property is Brianne Souder, a visual arts instructor, who lives here with her husband and son.

County Records
Built 1900. 2609 sq ft, 2.5 stories, 2.5 baths, basement, 8,400 sq ft lot. Detached garage.