This house was built in the 1840s. It is in the most popular architectural style of the era. From 1825 through 1850 everyone was building in the Greek Revival. It became popular in the United States because of the wish to equate the democratic ideals of the American Republic (celebrating its 50th birthday) with the democracy of the ancient Greeks. You can see elements of a Greek temple in this style.There is a pediment (the big triangle) facing the street on the second floor and a large, prominent porch with solid columns. The back portion of the house was added later, probably in the 1870s (it is of a different style).
Mr. Dickson was a carriage maker and when he built this house it was standing alone on land he purchased from Samuel Goodrich. In the 1870s, he divided his land into lots and built houses first for rental and then for sale. If you look at the insurance maps from the 1870s and 1880s, every single house facing Warren Square was owned by Mr. Dickson. Even now, if you look carefully, you will see that the houses are all similar, with some slight modifications. They are two family houses with the double entrances, two story bays on each side of the house and dormers in the roof. You can see the brackets under the cornice of the roof. These are a hallmark of the Italianate style that came into fashion after the Greek Revival (about 1850). The Dickson house was sold in 2004 and converted into condominiums.
[You can walk around the square to get a view of the houses if you have time.]