Monument Square Historic District (Leominster, Massachusetts)

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Monument Square Historic District
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Location Leominster, Massachusetts
Coordinates 42°31′37″N71°45′37″W / 42.52694°N 71.76028°W / 42.52694; -71.76028 Coordinates: 42°31′37″N71°45′37″W / 42.52694°N 71.76028°W / 42.52694; -71.76028
Architect Multiple
Architectural style Mid 19th Century Revival, Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Late Victorian
NRHP reference #

82004474

[1]
Added to NRHP July 8, 1982

The Monument Square Historic District is a historic district on Main and Water Streets, and Grove Avenue in Leominster, Massachusetts. The district includes Leominster's traditional town common or square, which is known as "Leomister Square" or "the Common."

Leominster, Massachusetts City in Massachusetts, United States

Leominster is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the second-largest city in Worcester County, with a population of 40,759 at the 2010 census. Leominster is located north of Worcester and west of Boston. Both Route 2 and Route 12 pass through Leominster. Interstate 190, Route 13, and Route 117 all have starting/ending points in Leominster. Leominster is bounded by Fitchburg and Lunenburg to the north, Lancaster to the east, Sterling and Princeton to the south, and Westminster to the west.

Contents

Leominster's common is the site of several monuments, including: a monument marking the site of the town's second meeting house from 1775-1824 (which was replaced by the first town house), a Native American mortar (moved to the site in 1880), several veterans' memorials, and a firefighters' memorial. The Leominster Historical Society headquarters is adjacent to the square.

In 1743 the common was chosen as the site of the "First Church" meeting house in Leominster. At that time, an active church congregation was required for a town to gain a charter from the Massachusetts government. Originally a Congregationalist (Puritan) congregation, First Church's members later adopted a Unitarian theology in the early 19th century, causing the traditional Reformed (Calvinist) members to leave the building and found what is now Pilgrim Congregational Church, also located on the common. The First Church congregation was funded with state tax revenue until 1835, when Massachusetts separated its churches from state funding. [2]

Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement named for its belief that the God in Christianity is one person, as opposed to the Trinity which in many other branches of Christianity defines God as three persons in one being: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Unitarian Christians, therefore, believe that Jesus was inspired by God in his moral teachings, and he is a savior, but he was not a deity or God incarnate. Unitarianism does not constitute one single Christian denomination, but rather refers to a collection of both extant and extinct Christian groups, whether historically related to each other or not, which share a common theological concept of the oneness nature of God.

The historic district also contains many 19th-century buildings, and the area was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. The city hall and various churches and businesses are adjacent to the square.

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.

See also

National Register of Historic Places listings in Worcester County, Massachusetts Wikimedia list article

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) designated in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The locations of NRHP properties and districts for which the latitude and longitude coordinates are included below, may be seen in a map.

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References

  1. National Park Service (2008-04-15). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
  2. Mark Bodanza, Leominster Champion, 1/23/2009 (Neighborhoods), "First Church has rich history,"http://www.leominsterchamp.com/news/2009-01-23/neighborhoods/020.html