Benjamin Beard House | |
Location | 251 Ash St., Reading, Massachusetts |
---|---|
Coordinates | 42°31′0.4″N71°6′3.01″W / 42.516778°N 71.1008361°W Coordinates: 42°31′0.4″N71°6′3.01″W / 42.516778°N 71.1008361°W |
Built | 1854 |
Architectural style | Greek Revival |
MPS | Reading MRA |
NRHP reference No. | 84002505 [1] |
Added to NRHP | July 19, 1984 |
The Benjamin Beard House is a historic house in Reading, Massachusetts. Built in the early 1850s, it is a well-preserved example of a distinctive local variant of Greek Revival architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. [1]
The Benjamin Beard House stands south of downtown Reading, at the southwest corner of Ash Street and Avon Street. The house is a 1+1⁄2-story wood-frame structure, with a side-gable roof, single off-center interior chimney, and clapboarded exterior. It is laid out in what was a fairly common local variant, with the long spine of the house parallel to the street, and set on a slightly raised mound. There are pilasters on the corners, and the front entry has a somewhat tall Federal style high entablature, with sidelight windows and plain side molding supporting a corniced entablature. A single-story ell extends to the rear of the main block. [2]
The house was probably built in the early 1850s. Benjamin Beard, its first owner, was the town's first jeweler, opening a store in 1847 after having previously worked for a local clock- and watchmaker. Beard's son William also continued the profession. [2]
The Zadock Taft House is a historic house at 115 South Main Street in Uxbridge, Massachusetts. Probably built in the 18th century, it received its present Greek Revival styling in the 1840s or 1850s. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
The Henry Bigelow House is a historic house in the Newton Corner village of Newton, Massachusetts. Built about 1830, it is a good local example of Greek Revival architecture, important as home to Henry Bigelow, a prominent local educator and philanthropist. On September 4, 1986, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
The Hodges House is a historic house at 41 Worcester Street in Taunton, Massachusetts. Built about 1850, it is a well-preserved example of a Greek Revival Cape style house. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The Captain Oliver Bearse House was a historic house in the Hyannis village of Barnstable, Massachusetts. Built c. 1841, it was a fine example of Greek Revival architecture, built for a prominent local ship's captain. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. It was extensively damaged by fire in 2011, and has since been demolished.
The Thomas Cook House is a historic house in Somerville, Massachusetts. Built c. 1850, it is the only surviving Greek Revival farmhouse on the west side of the city, and a reminder of the area's agrarian past. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Alden Batchelder House is a historic house in Reading, Massachusetts. Built in the early 1850s, it is an excellent example of an early Italianate design. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The Batchelder House is a historic house at 607 Pearl Street in Reading, Massachusetts. Built about 1783, it is a good local example of Federal period architecture. It is also significant for its association with the locally prominent Batchelder family, and as an early shoemaking site. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The Charles Manning House is a historic house in Reading, Massachusetts. It is a 2+1⁄2-story wood-frame house, three bays wide, with a front-facing gable roof, clapboard siding, and a granite foundation. Built c. 1850, it has well-preserved Greek Revival details. It has a typical three-bay side-hall plan, with corner pilasters and a main entry surround consisting of long sidelight windows framed by pilasters and topped by an entablature. The windows are topped by shallow pedimented lintels. Charles Manning was a longtime Reading resident and part of its woodworking community, building parlor desks. Reading's Manning Street is named for him.
The Edwin Bassett House is a historic house in Reading, Massachusetts. It is a well-preserved Greek Revival house, built in 1850 by Edwin Bassett, the first Reading shoemaker to install a McKay stitching machine, a device that revolutionized and led to the industrialization of what was before that a cottage industry. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The Joseph Bancroft House is a historic house in Reading, Massachusetts. Built in the early 1830s, it is a prominent local example of Federal period architecture. It was built for a member of the locally prominent Bancroft family, who inherited a large tract of land in the area. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The Luther Elliott House is a historic house in Reading, Massachusetts. The modestly sized 1.5-story wood-frame house was built in 1850 by Luther Elliott, a local cabinetmaker who developed an innovative method of sawing wood veneers. The house has numerous well preserved Greek Revival features, including corner pilasters, and a front door surrounded with sidelight windows and pilasters supporting a tall entablature.
The Tilley Raymond House is a historic house in Worcester, Massachusetts. Built about 1847 by a prominent local builder, it is a well-preserved local example of a once popular Greek Revival side hall style house. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
The Padilla Beard House is a historic house at 18 Maple Street in Stoneham, Massachusetts. Built about 1850, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984 for its association with Padilla Beard, the first operator the stagecoach line on the route between Boston and Reading. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The C.H. Brown Cottage is a historic house at 34 Wright Street in Stoneham, Massachusetts. Probably built in the 1830s, it is a well-preserved example of worker housing built for employees of local shoe factories. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The Josiah Beard House is a historic house at 70 School Street in Waltham, Massachusetts. Built about 1844, it is a well-preserved local example of a side-hall Greek Revival house. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Jonas Cowdry House is a historic house at 61 Prospect Street in Wakefield, Massachusetts. Built c. 1833, the Federal style wood-frame house is three bays wide and four deep, a significant local variant to conventional Federal style architecture. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Nathaniel Cowdry House is a historic house at 71 Prospect Street in Wakefield, Massachusetts. Built about 1764, it is one of Wakefield's oldest buildings, built by a member of the locally prominent Cowdry family, who were early settlers. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Comins-Wall House is a historic house located at 42 Hamilton Street in Southbridge, Massachusetts. Built about 1850, it is a distinctive local example of a Greek Revival cottage with later Victorian embellishments. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 22, 1989.
The Hardwick House is a historic house at 59–61 Spear Street in Quincy, Massachusetts. The 2+1⁄2-story wood-frame house was built in 1850s, and is one of the city's largest Greek Revival houses. Its massing, with side-gable roof, is more typical of the Federal period, but it has corner pilasters, a full entablature, and pedimented gables. The main entry has full-length side lights and is topped by an entablature. The house was built by Franklin Hardwick, owner of a local granite business.
The Samuel Paddock Strong House is a historic house at 94 West Main Street in Vergennes, Vermont. Built in the 1830s for a prominent local businessman, it is a well-preserved example of Greek Revival architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. It now houses the Strong House Inn.