Mary E. Wells School | |
Location | 80 Marcy St., Southbridge, Massachusetts |
---|---|
Coordinates | 42°4′40″N72°2′15″W / 42.07778°N 72.03750°W |
Built | 1916 |
Architect | Peabody & Stearns |
NRHP reference No. | 100008958 [1] |
Added to NRHP | May 3, 2023 |
The Mary E. Wells School is a historic school building at 80 Marcy Street in Southbridge, Massachusetts. Built in 1916, it is one the last known commissions of the architectural firm Peabody & Stearns. [2] It was built with funding from Mary E. Wells, wife of George Wells, founder of the locally prominent American Optical Company. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2023. [1] The building was used as a school until 2012, and has since been converted into residences. [3]
The former Mary E. Wells School building stands west of downtown Southbridge, on a large parcel at the northwest corner of Marcy Street and Main Street (Massachusetts Route 131). It is a U-shaped two-story masonry structure, built out of brick with cast stone trim, and set on a raised basement. The main façade, facing Marcy Street, is adorned by two projecting entry pavilions with elaborate door surrounds. [4]
The school was built in 1916 to a design by Peabody & Stearns, and is believed to be one that firm's last commissions. Originally more elaborate, the building design was simplified to reduce construction costs. It was expanded several times, in 1925 and again in the 1980s. It served as the city's first purpose-built high school, previous secondary school education having been given in the town hall. It remained in use as the high school until 1960, when the current Southbridge High School opened. It was converted into a junior high school, and was closed in 2012. [5] The building is named for Mary E. Wells, wife of American Optical founder George Wells, who was the first woman elected to public office in the community, serving on its board of education in the 1890s. [4] It has since been converted to residential use.
Easthampton is a city in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The city is in the Pioneer Valley, near the five colleges in the college towns of Northampton and Amherst. The population was 16,211 at the 2020 census.
Maginnis & Walsh was a Boston-based architecture firm started by Charles Donagh Maginnis and Timothy Francis Walsh in 1905. It was known for its innovative design of churches in Boston in the first half of the 20th century.
The Albert, formerly the Griswold Building, is a former office building named after architect Albert Kahn, located at 1214 Griswold Street in Downtown Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and is part of the Capitol Park Historic District. In 2014, it was renovated into apartments.
The Sarah J. Baker School is an historic school building in Boston, Massachusetts. Built in 1905 by a prominent local architect, it is a well-preserved example of early 20th-century Romanesque Revival school architecture. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, and was included in the Moreland Street Historic District in 1984. It has been converted to elderly housing.
The Unitarian Universalist Church of Medford and The Osgood House are a historic Unitarian Universalist church building and parsonage house at 141 and 147 High Street in Medford, Massachusetts.
The Smith Alumnae Gymnasium is a historic former athletic facility on the Smith College campus in Northampton, Massachusetts. Located facing Burton Lawn, it was built in 1890 as a fine addition to the adjacent Gothic style buildings. The building now houses the college's archives, and was connected by the adjacent Neilson Library by a bridge in 1982. It is the first place in which a formal women's basketball game was played, in 1892, and is one of the first American athletic facilities built specifically for women. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
Notre Dame Catholic Church is a historic church in Southbridge, Massachusetts. It is one of two churches serving the Parish of Saint John Paul II; Saint Mary Church, located at the corner of Marcy and Hamilton Street, also serves as the location of the Parish Center and Rectory.
The Windsor Court Historic District is a residential historic district in Southbridge, Massachusetts, United States. It is a collection of five three-family residences located on Windsor Court and adjacent North Street that were built by the American Optical Company between 1915 and 1917 to provide worker housing. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Malvern Road School is a historic school building on Malvern Road and Southbridge Street in Worcester, Massachusetts. Built in 1896 and enlarged in 1907, it is a high quality example of Beaux Arts and Renaissance Revival architecture. It is also significant as a well-preserved work of the local architectural firm Fuller & Delano. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. The building has been converted to residential condominiums.
The Ashland Mill Tenement is a historic tenement at 141-145 Ashland Avenue in Southbridge, Massachusetts. Built about 1835, this unassuming rowhouse is one of the oldest documented factory-related buildings in the city. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Building at 38–42 Worcester Street is a historic six-unit triple decker in Southbridge, Massachusetts. Built sometime between 1878 and 1898, it has features influenced by the area's then-growing French Canadian immigrant population, including its outside porches. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Building at 52 Main Street is a historic triple decker residence in Southbridge, Massachusetts. Built early in the 20th century, it is a good example of period worker housing with French Canadian immigrant design features. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Alpha M. Cheney House is a historic house at 61 Chestnut Street in Southbridge, Massachusetts. It was built in 1881 for Alpha M. Cheney, then one of the largest shareholders in American Optical Company, one of Southbridge's largest employers. Designed by Barker & Nourse of Worcester, the house is one of Southbridge's best surviving examples of high Victorian Gothic styling. The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Hamilton Mill—West Street Factory Housing is a historic house at 45 West Street in Southbridge, Massachusetts. Built in the second quarter of the 19th century, it was a particularly architecturally elaborate example of a worker tenement house with Greek Revival elements, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989 for its architecture. It has since been resided, losing most of those features.
The Hamilton Woolen Company Historic District encompasses the well preserved "Big Mill" complex of the Hamilton Woolen Company, built in the mid 19th century. Located at the confluence of McKinstry Brook and the Quinebaug River in central Southbridge, Massachusetts, the complex consists of a cluster of mill buildings and a rare collection of 1830s brick mill worker housing units located nearby. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The House at 18 Walnut Street in Southbridge, Massachusetts is one of two modest yet remarkably high Shingle Style houses on Walnut Street in Southbridge, Massachusetts. It was built c. 1898 by George Wells, president of the locally important American Optical Company, apparently to provide worker housing for company employees. Of the two houses Wells had built, this one is the best preserved. It has a slate gambrel roof with projecting sections.
The Maple Street Historic District consists of a cluster of ten similar worker cottages on Maple Street in Southbridge, Massachusetts. They were built as part of an effort by the locally important American Optical Company to improve the quality of its worker housing in the 1910s. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The Twinehurst American Optical Company Neighborhood is a residential historic district in Southbridge, Massachusetts. It consists of seven three family houses built by the owners of the American Optical Company to provide housing for their workers. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
Peabody Veterans Memorial High School (PVMHS), also known as Peabody High School, is a comprehensive and competitive public high school in Peabody, Massachusetts, United States. It is the only comprehensive public high school in the Peabody School District, spanning grades 9–12 in the U.S. education system. It is particularly known for its performing arts program including instrumental and choral ensembles and drama club.
Southbridge is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,740 at the 2020 census. Although Southbridge has a city form of government, it is legally known as the Town of Southbridge.