Presentation of a silver bowl to Colonel Everett Chamberlin Benton on his birthday by the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts at Bellmont, the Cushing-Col. Benton Estate, Belmont, Mass.

Description

A rear view of the John Perkins Cushing-Colonel Everett Chamberlin Benton House at 75 Oakley Road in Belmont, Massachusetts. J. P. Cushing named his estate "Bellmont" after a "gentle eminence at its center that provided views toward Fresh Pond and the Mystic River valley." The property was originally in a part of Watertown that later became Belmont, which was named after the estate. Asher Benjamin designed the Greek Revival house and five greenhouses with participation from Cushing. Construction began in 1840 and was completed some fifteen years later. Colonel Benton, a businessman who founded the Massachusetts Fire and Maritime Insurance Company and was a Republican politician, purchased the estate in 1903 and lived there until he died on February 5, 1924. Colonel Benton was a captain of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts and he invited the Company to his estate for their first field day in 100 years on September 25, 1911. Captain J. Stearns Cushing of the Governor's Council presented a silver bowl to him in celebration of his 49th birthday on behalf of the Company. The event drew large crowds to the grounds his estate.