Known by locals as “Burns Row” and built in 1907 by the Burns Brothers this is a row of 16 almost identical 1,200-square-foot townhouses on the south side of Green Street between Adams and Juniata Streets. The five brothers also built the Burns Brothers Carriage Factory in the 1890s and other buildings in the first decade of the 20th century. The buildings were framed using a method known as balloon framing, which means there are no interior bearing walls, all the bearing weight is on the exterior walls. The exterior is a textured concrete block manufactured in Havre de Grace. The plant that produced the blocks closed in 1913. The Burns brothers built several such formstone houses during this time period.

The late J. Noble Mentzer moved into one of these houses in the 1940s, between the Jones family and the Baker family. That’s where he said he saw “the most beautiful girl of my life” and married Dorothy Ann Jones in June 1949. Together they had a son, Mark, and daughter, Eileen. He worked for the Post Office and served in the Army and the Navy before going to the Aberdeen Proving Ground from which he retired.

An article in The Havre de Grace Ledger in 1907 said foundations were being laid for a row of 10 houses on south side of Green Street for Walter E. Burns, constructed of concrete and will be “modern in all their appointments.” Walter Burns was also director of the Havre de Grace Chamber of Commerce in 1933.

These easily recognized houses all stand solid today; many have been completely renovated and updated. And two adjoining houses were bought by Darryl Leonetti and the late Sally Leonetti and turned into a 3300 square foot, five-bedroom home in 2007. They did the work themselves over 15 months. They put in some unique features such as custom brick countertops, an oak stairway, magnificent hand burned and stained hardwood floors, and a peaceful outdoor retreat. Other such rows of Burns Brothers houses exist on Congress Avenue and Fountain Street.