The parcel of land on which this house was later built was sold by Circuit Court Trustee Archer H. Jarrett (of Jarrettsville, MD) in 1862 to Charles W. and Elizabeth Lee who then sold one of the lots in 1877 to Fredericka Lay. Between then and 1896, Fredericka Lay acquired another of the adjacent lots and sold the two lots to Randolph Lay. The year of 1896 is most likely the year this large frame home was built by Randolph Lay. After Randolph’s death, the property descended to Jacob C. and Bertha Lay of Baltimore, and then in 1907 to Mary Lay of Havre de Grace (Mary may have been the daughter of Jacob and Bertha).

In 1915, Mary Lay sold this home to Christine J. Carroll (1885-1978), who was the wife of Thomas Milton Carroll, Mayor of Havre de Grace from 1913-1915. He also was the founder in 1903 of Carroll’s Laundry nearby, which continually expanded between Green, Franklin, and Stokes Streets until 1964, when the large facility burned to the ground.

Before that disaster, however, the Carrolls had sold this property in 1924 to George G. Bryde and his wife, Rachel Holly Bryde (1892-1967). Rachel Holly was the second daughter of James Thomas “Jim” Holly (1849-1935) and Irene Holly, who lived at 615-617 Market Street, and was the granddaughter of John W. “Daddy” Holly (1813-1892) the well-known decoy carver. Jim Holly was best known for building bushwhack boats in the workshop behind his house but he also was an accomplished decoy carver and duck hunter. Obviously a multi-talented man, Jim Holly was also a member of The Bayside Cornet Band, for which he played the snare drum. The band was popular between 1887 and 1915 at social events in Havre de Grace and for playing John Sousa march music on the bandstand (gazebo) in Tydings Park (then called City Park).

From 1927 until 1959, this home was owned by Nettie E. Holly (1899-1959), a daughter of George and Florence Holly. When Nettie died, her Executor sold the home to Alvaro J. Moretti (1913-1963) and Hazel Stout Moretti, his wife, who died in 2002. Alvaro was an immigrant from Italy and they had two children, Ernest A. Moretti and Pearl Marty Johnson. In 1962, the Morettis sold this home to Anthony James “Tony” Vincenti (1935-2020) and Marilyn S. Vincenti. Tony’s parents were Angelo “Reds” Vincenti and Teresa Vincenti who ran the popular “Blue Room” bar and restaurant on Erie Street for many years. Five years later, Tony and Marilyn Vincenti sold this property to Carey and Mary Lynn Snyder, real estate business partners of Allen J. Fair.

The Snyders owned this for two years before selling it in 1969 to Gilbert G. “Curley” Wagoner and Matilda “Marie” Cianelli Wagoner. Marie was the daughter of Benjamin Cianelli (born in Italy in 1895) and Francis Cianelli.

Gilbert and Marie Wagoner lived here for about the next 25 years until Gilbert died in 1994. Among their children were Lorraine Coakley and Joanne Wagoner Gamatoria (1960-2020). Marie then sold the house to Geoffrey and Terri Redfearn who owned this for another 10 years, followed by 8 more years with Bridgett Lyons before she relocated.

This large home on a double lot is now the home and art gallery (Metamorphosis Gallery) of artist Linnea Lorraine Tober. She and Kevin D. Murphy purchased the home in 2012 when they were transferred from the Jersey shore with the DoD’s Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) initiative to the Aberdeen Proving Ground. In 2018, Linnea opened her home to the Havre de Grace Annual Candlelight Tour where visitors could see this historic home and also some of Linnea’s unique artwork on display.

County Records
Built 1930. 2144 sq ft, 2 stories with 500 sq ft basement, 2 baths, 6000 sq ft lot.