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United States Department of the Interior NATIONAL PARK SERVICE 1849 C Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20240 February 22, 2011 Notice to file: This property has been automatically listed in the National Register of Historic Places. This is due to the fact that the publication of our Federal Register Notice: "National Register of Historic Places: Pending Nominations and Other Actions" was delayed beyond our control to the point where the mandated 15 day public comment period ended after our required 45 day time frame to act on the nomination. If the 45*h day falls on a weekend or Federal holiday, the property will be automatically listed the next business day. The nomination is technically adequate and meets the National Register criteria for evaluation, and thus, automatically listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Edson Beall Historian National Register of Historic Places Phone: 202-354-2255 E-mail: Edson_Beall@nps.gov Web: www.nps.gov/history/nr NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 RECE (Expires 5/31/2012) 2280 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service 012 JAN 0 3 2011 National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NAT.REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES NATIONAL PARK SERVICE This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations for individual properties and districts. See instructions in National Register Bulletin, How to Completethe National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. If any item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not applicable." For functions, architectural classification, materials, and areas of significance,enter only categories and subcategories from the instructions.
Place additional certification comments, entries, and narrative items on continuation sheets if needed (NPS Form 10-900a). 1. Name of Property historic name Athol High School other names/site number Athol Regional Junior High School 2. Location street & number 494 School Street city or town Athol state Massachusetts code MA county Worcester code 027 not for publication vicinity zip code 01331 3. State/Federal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, I hereby certify that this nomination _ request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60. In my opinion, the property V meets does not meet the National Register Criteria.
I recommend that this property be considered significant at the following level(s) of significance: _national - statewide local Brona Simon Decmba 29,2010 Signature of certifying official/Title Brona Simon, SHPO, MA Historical Commission State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government In my opinion, the property - meets - does not meet the National Register criteria. Signature of commenting official Date Title 4. National Park Service Certification I hereby gertify that this property is: entered in the National Register - determined not eligible for the National Register -other (explai Eas ou N. Beall Signature of the Keepe State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government - determined eligible for the National Register _ removed from the National Register 2-18.11 Date of Action Athol High School Name of Property 5.
Classification Ownership of Property (Check as many boxes as apply.) private public - Local public - State public - Federal category of Propert Check only one box. X building(s) district site structure object Name of related multiple property listing (Enter "N/A" if property is not part of a multiple property listing) N/A 6. Function or Use Historic Functions (Enter categories from instructions.) Education, school 7.
Description Architectural Classification (Enter categories from instructions.) Art Deco Worcester, MA County and State Number of Resources within Property (Do not include previously listed resources in the count.) Contributing 1 0 0 2 0 3 Noncontributing 0 0 0 0 0 buildings district site structure object Total Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register None Current Functions (Enter categories from instructions.) Vacant/Not in Use Materials (Enter categories from instructions.) foundation: Concrete walls: Brick, stone, concrete roof: other: Asphalt 2 Athol High School Name of Property Worcester, MA County and State Narrative Description (Describe the historic and current physical appearance of the property. Explain contributing and noncontributing resources if necessary.
Begin with a summary paragraph that briefly describes the general characteristics of the property, such as its location, setting, size, and significant features.) Summary Paragraph The Athol High School in Athol, Worcester County, Massachusetts, is a flat-roofed, H-plan building composed of two River and the Springfield Terminal railroad tracks; the building is approximately ½ mile south and west of Athol's center. The surrounding neighborhood is mostly composed of single and multi-family houses from the late 19th century (Photograph 7). A low granite wall on the property separates the front lawn of the building from the sidewalk and is a contributing resource; the wall predates the 1937 construction, and likely dates to the 1890s. Directly behind (north) the building, the land rises relatively steeply and is mostly wooded.
Two concrete-tie retaining walls at the rear, which date to 1937, also comprise a contributing structure. Narrative Description The Athol High School is located on School Street in Athol, Worcester County, Massachusetts, about a half mile from the town center. The H-plan structure consists of a central 1937 section and two side wings which originally dated to 1915. The 1915 wings had originally been added to a central section dating to 1892, which was demolished in 1937 for the new central section. A gymnasium section, also dating to 1937, is on the rear of one of the wings. Several late 19th century residences are still extant in the neighborhood, while the area just north of the school is wooded. The entire building is two stories with a raised basement, and is of load-bearing brick construction, with a warm red brick exterior.
The recessed main block, which has a central entrance and two major bays on each side, is flanked on both sides by projecting 3-bay wings. These 1915 sections on the east and west sides of the building were renovated extensively in 1937 when the new central section and additions were constructed, so that their original features are virtually unrecognizable, except for their footprint. All of the building features an Art Deco design that was popular in the 1930s. All three sections have a simple beltcourse that delineates the basement level from the first story, and unornamented coping, a later alteration, marks the top of the roofline of all sections. The main central block has a central entrance with two bays of windows flanking each side. The main entrance projects slightly from the main façade, with granite curbing and steps (Photograph 6).
The limestone architrave around the entrance is relatively unornamented, but features the school's later name, "Athol Junior High School/Athol Royalston Regional School District," in a panel above the door. The panel formerly displayed the original name, "Athol High School." The pediment features carved, geometrical floral Art Deco motifs and is framed by egg-and-dart molding. Paired glass and aluminum-frame doors are recessed in the limestone-framed entrance. Simple wood pilasters flank the doors, which have a transom above. Above the central entrance is a tall, narrow window with aluminum sash and wide concrete stepped surround, which extends to the roofline. The surround is ornamented with vertical and horizontal grooving, typical of Art Deco and Art Moderne styles.
The central block's roofline is broken by a stepped parapet, with a round medallion that contains a carving of the town seal. The roofline is different from the original 1937 façade; a photograph from 1949 shows that the roof line rose above the flanking wings and was capped with a flat, wide limestone coping with vertical grooves. The bays on each side of the entrance feature banks of four windows, which are separated by panels of bricks with black and blue hues. The windows are 1/1 aluminum sash, set within a simple limestone surround. Concrete headers with deep horizontal grooves frame the top of the banks of windows. The window openings in the basement level are separated by red-brick panels, and are currently covered with wood panels.
A simple stone beltcourse delineates the basement level from the first story, while simple stone or concrete coping, a more recent alteration, marks the roofline. Athol High School Name of Property Worcester, MA County and State The projecting east and west wings have identical fenestration on the front facades, similar in arrangement and style to the central block. The windows in the first and second stories are set in two banks of window openings, with three windows separated by a panel of black and blue bricks. Most of the windows are 1/1 double-hung aluminum sash, while a small number have aluminum sash with a 1/2 aluminum hopper opening. The original window sash appear to have been 12/12 wood double-hung sash on the first and second stories, and 8/8 wood double-hung sash on the basement level.
The west wing of the building is on a granite and limestone foundation: the southern portion of the wing, which dates to 1915, is on the granite foundation (Photograph 5). The portion of the wing at the rear, constructed in 1937, rests on the limestone foundation. The west elevation of the wing is nearly identical to the front façade, with a central projecting entrance flanked by two bays of windows on either side that are the same arrangement as the front façade, with the exception that the windows are in banks of four rather than three. The entrance is also similar to the front central entrance, although it has more simplistic geometric floral carvings in the pediment, and the name of the school is not carved into the stone. Immediately south of the entrance bay are small, narrow windows in the first and second story.
These windows contain 1/1 aluminum sash within a simple limestone surround Similar to the west wing, the east wing of the building rests on a 1915 granite and a 1937 limestone foundation (Photograph 2). The east side has a central entrance identical to the west elevation of the west wing, and the southern bay has the same window fenestration found in the southern bay of the west wing. In the northern section of the bay is the gymnasium section that was added in 1937. The northern section of the wing is five bays wide, with the centered bays projecting slightly from the building plane. The raised basement level has single windows that have been covered with wood panels. The first story also has windows within a simple limestone surround, which have been covered with wood panels.
The large windows in the second story, where the gymnasium is located, contain 30/40 fixed panes, with a centered hopper-style aluminum window. The windows have a limestone lintel. The windows in the projecting bay are separated by a panel of black and blue bricks, and have five aluminum vents immediately below the windows and brick The rear, or north, elevation of the building contains the additions to the 1915 east and west wings and rear of the central section (Photographs 3, 4). In the west side, there are no openings in the basement and first story. The second story contains a bank of three windows, with 1/1 aluminum sash, set within a simple limestone surround. The first and second stories of the central section have two sets of banks of four windows, with 1/1 aluminum sash, set within a simple limestone surround.
Unlike the front and side elevations of the building, the rear does not feature the panels of black and blue bricks between the windows. The central section also has a projecting section on the east, with a brick smokestack and 1/1 aluminum-sash windows on the north and west elevation of this projection. The windows in the first and second stories are set within simple limestone surrounds. A limestone beltcourse runs across the elevation of the building between the basement and first-story levels, with the exception of the gymnasium wing, which does not have a beltcourse. The eastern side of the rear elevation is much larger, as it houses the gymnasium. It has four of the gymnasium windows in the center of the wing, and is blind at the basement and first-story levels. An entrance in the western part of the elevation, on the first story, is accessed by a simple steel staircase.
Entrances are also located in the eastern side, on the first and second stories, which are connected by a simple, open steel staircase. A series of one-story flat-roofed additions are in the crook between the gymnasium area and central section. Interior The interior plan of the building features lateral central corridors with classrooms on both sides, and stairways at the front central entrance and at the east and west ends of the respective east and west wings. The three-level interior is composed of a basement level, which contains ancillary functions such as laboratories, cafeteria, and locker rooms; a first story level with eight classrooms and two offices, and the second floor, similar in layout to the first floor, although it contains no offfices. The gymnasium is in the northeast section of the building and is two stories in height.
The main corridors of each floor have linoleum-clad floors and smooth linoleum wainscoting (Photograph 11). The walls are interspersed with metal lockers between the classroom doors. These classroom doors are typically single wood- panel with nine lights and a transom above. More recent doors are wood with a single vertical window. The central stairway has a short run of steps, which leads to both the first floor and basement from the front central entrance. The stairway features 4 Athol High School Name of Property Worcester, MA County and State a simple metal railing, with alternating plain and turned metal balusters (Photograph 10). The treads are covered with linoleum at the first floor and rubber in the area leading to the basement. A chair lift has been installed in this stairway.
The east and west stairways have a wood railing with simple wood balusters; the treads are covered with rubber (Photograph 19). An interior doorway separates each stairway from the corridors. These interior doorways have paired wood doors framed by multipane transom and sidelights (Photograph 12). Some of the doors are simple wood- frame with full glass panels, while others have a half glass panel in the upper part of the door (Photograph 20). Lighting throughout the floors is composed of hanging fluorescent lighting, with some safety lighting in the hallways and basement (Photographs 8, 16). The basement level has lower ceilings than the first and second floors (Photograph 17). The first and second ceiling heights appear to be intact: some rooms have decorative tin ceilings, although these are only seen in the 1915 sections (Photograph 15).
The majority of the rooms have plain plaster ceilings (Photograph 13). The rooms all have simple wood trim around the baseboards, windows, and blackboards. Every classroom has built-in shelves or closets that also have the plain wood trim (Photograph 15). Some classrooms also retain the original radiators and covers (Photograph 9). Supply rooms for books, with built-in shelves, are located outside the majority of the classrooms. The main feature of the first floor is the gymnasium/auditorium in the northeast corner of the building. This space has a wood parquet floor, tiled walls, and wood bleachers along the west wall. Storage spaces are behind and underneath the bleachers. Along the eastern side of the room is a wood stage, with a proscenium arch framed by molded wood paneling and fluted wood pilasters (Photograph 14).
Flooring throughout the first floor is a mix of wood flooring and areas that have been covered with linoleum and carpeting (Photographs 8, 9, 13). The second floor is laid out almost identically to the first floor plan, except that the gymnasium is not open to this floor. Skylights illuminate the central corridor, and there is a locker alcove centered in the north side. The second floor also contains the library in the north side, with built-in shelves and raised-panel bookcases (Photograph 16). The second floor classrooms also contain separate storage spaces for books, similar to those found on the first floor. Flooring throughout the second floor is a mix of wood flooring, and areas that have been covered with linoleum and carpeting. The basement level contains spaces for laboratories, a cafeteria (Photograph 18), and two locker rooms.
The locker rooms have tiled walls and floors, and separate shower spaces. This level is also where service spaces are located, such as the electrical room, boiler room, and janitorial supply rooms. Archaeological Description While no ancient Native American sites are known on the school property, sites may be present. Two ancient sites are recorded in the general area (within approximately one mile). A single ancient Native American site (19-WR-398) is reportedly located approximately 1,725 feet (526 meters) northeast of the school, downslope from it, on the north side of the Millers River. The site is recorded as a chipped stone scatter, and according to the site form, neither the artifact types nor site location had been confirmed at the time the form was prepared.
The second site - an isolated spot find (19-WR- 734) - was reported on a floodplain knoll in the Tully River wetlands approximately 5,350 feet (1,631 meters) west/northwest of the school. The spot find was a gray quartz flake. This site is also located well downslope from the school and north of the Millers River at its confluence with Tully Creek. Environmental characteristics of the school property represent locational criteria (slope, soil drainage, proximity to wetlands) that are favorable for the presence of ancient Native American sites. The school occupies a well-drained, level to moderately sloping, high riverine terrace in close proximity to wetlands. Soils along School Street and immediately surrounding the school are generally sandy and formed on glacial outwash plains and stream terraces.
North and downslope of the school to Main Street, land surfaces are steeply sloped and soils are extremely stony. The Millers River is located less than 1,000 feet north of the school. An intermittent drainage lies approximately 863 feet (263 meters) east of the school. The entire town of Athol lies within the Millers River drainage, part of the larger Connecticut River drainage. 5 Athol High School Name of Property Worcester, MA County and State In spite of the information presented above, the potential for locating significant ancient Native American resources on the school property is low. Only the level to moderately sloping terraced area north of School Street is sensitive for ancient Native American resources. The steeply sloped and extremely stony area north of the school to Main Street has a low sensitivity for ancient sites.
School construction (1852, 1892, 1915, 1937), landscape features (walkways, access roads, retaining walls), and utilities would have destroyed any potential ancient Native American resources that might have been present in the area. The extant school structure, which has a basement, covers nearly the entire terraced area north of School Street. The remaining portion of the terraced area surrounding the school has lost integrity due to installation of the landscape features and utilities described above. Few, if any, ancient sites in the region occupy high riverine terrace landforms similar to the Athol High School location. The potential for locating significant historic archaeological resources on the school property is also low.
Construction of the extant school building, landscaping, landscape features, and utilities would have destroyed any historic archaeological resources that predated school construction in 1915 and 1937. The extant school building is centralized on the buildable portion of the high riverine terrace. Any structural evidence from the 1852 wood-frame school or 1892 structure have been destroyed by school construction. No barns, stables, outbuildings, or occupational-related features (trash pits, privies, wells) have been identified with any of the school buildings. Although some of these structures were likely present, especially with the 1852 school, they too were also likely destroyed by construction of the existing facility. 6 Athol High School Name of Property 8. Statement of Significance