Charles Street Workers' Housing Historic District

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Charles Street Workers' Housing Historic District
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Location 128–144 Charles St., Waltham, Massachusetts
Coordinates 42°22′25″N71°14′37″W / 42.37361°N 71.24361°W / 42.37361; -71.24361 Coordinates: 42°22′25″N71°14′37″W / 42.37361°N 71.24361°W / 42.37361; -71.24361
Area less than one acre
Built 1865
MPS Waltham MRA
NRHP reference # 89001503 [1]
Added to NRHP September 28, 1989

The Charles Street Workers' Housing Historic District is a residential historic district at 128–144 Charles Street in Waltham, Massachusetts. It consists of four houses on a single city block, all of which are well-preserved vernacular worker houses built in 1865. They are representative of the city's growth of the period, and typify housing built for the city's laborers. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. [1]

Waltham, Massachusetts City in Massachusetts, United States

Waltham is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, the city was a prototype for 19th century industrial city planning, spawning what became known as the Waltham-Lowell system of labor and production. The city is now a center for research and higher education, home to Brandeis University and Bentley University. The population was 60,636 at the census in 2010.

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

Contents

Description and history

The district is located on the south side of Charles Street, a predominantly densely-built residential street extending west from the city's Central Square. It consists of a single block of Charles Street, between Williams and Harvard Street, with four uniform houses on it. All are unpretentious vernacular 2-1/2 story wood frame buildings, with simple decorations, and only modest modern alterations. One of the buildings, that at 128-132 Charles, is a duplex; the others are single family houses. The styling of the houses is reminiscent of the Greek Revival, with only one of the three houses sporting a 20th-century porch. [2]

Central Square Historic District (Waltham, Massachusetts)

The Central Square Historic District is a historic district encompassing the central town common of the city of Waltham, Massachusetts, and several commercial buildings facing the common or in its immediate vicinity. The common is bounded by Carter, Moody, Main, and Elm Streets; the district includes fourteen buildings, which are located on Main, Elm, Lexington, and Church Streets, on the north and east side of the common. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.

The houses were constructed in 1865 by Edward Campbell, as part of a westward expansion of worker house along the street. The area in which they were built was populated mainly by Irish laborers, as evidenced by what is known of the owners and residents of these houses at the time, and by the use of Irish names for some of the area streets. Early occupants were described in city directories as laborers. [2]

See also

Building at 202-204 Charles Street building in Massachusetts, United States

The Building at 202–204 Charles Street in Waltham, Massachusetts is a well-preserved example of multi-unit residential housing built in the city in the early decades of the 20th century. It was built in 1913, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.

This is a list of properties and historic districts in Waltham, Massachusetts, that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

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