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NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 (Expires 5/31/2012) RECEIVED 2280 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service JUL 615 National Register of Historic Places Registration Form This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations for individual properties and districts. See instructions in National Register Bulletin, How to Complete the 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 Hassanamisco Reservation other names/site number 2.
Location street & number 80 Brigham Hill Road NA not for publication NA city or town Grafton state Massachusetts code MA county Worcester code 027 vicinity zip code 01519 3. State/Federal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, I hereby certify thatthisnomination_ _ 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 does not meet the National Register Criteria.
1 recommend that this property be considered significant at the following level(s) of significance: _ national statewide local Brma Suro Signature of certifying official/Title Brona Simon, SHPO, MHC july '4, 2011 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 State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government Title 4. National Park Service Certification I hereby certify that this property is: Lentered in the National Register _ determined not eligible for the National Register - other (explain:) atuck Andues Signature of the Keeper _determined eligible for the National Register _ removed from the National Register 1/6/201 ate of Actio United States Department of the Interior Na For kSerieationaRegser of Historic PlaesRoir OMB No.
1024-001 Hassanamisco Reservation Name of Property 5. Classification Ownership of Property (Check as many boxes as apply.) Category of Property (Check only one box.) (Expires 5/31/2012) Worcester/MA County and State X private public - Local public - State public - Federal building(s) district X _site structure object Number of Resources within Property (Do not include previously listed resources in the count. Contributing Noncontributing 3 1 4 2 10 buildings sites structures objects Total Name of related multiple property listing (Enter "N/A" if property is not part of a multiple property listing) NA Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register NA 6.
Function or Use Historic Functions (Enter categories from instructions.) DWELLING/Single Dwelling RELIGION/Ceremonial Site Current Functions (Enter categories from instructions.) RECREATION and CULTURE.Museum RELIGION/Ceremonial Site 7. Description Architectural Classification (Enter categories from instructions.) NO STYLE Materials (Enter categories from instructions.) foundation: STONE walls: WOOD/Weatherboard roof: other: ASPHALT BRICK United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 (Expires 5/31/2012) Hassanamisco Reservation 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 Hassanamisco Reservation is an approximately three-acre property owned by the Nipmuc Nation, located within the town of Grafton in Worcester County, Massachusetts, at 80 Brigham Hill Road. The reservation today is the product of at least 282 years of use by Nipmuc people. First used as a domestic site area, the reservation later became a tribal center, in addition to continuing its function as a home lot associated with some of the principal figures in the tribe's cultural survival. The property has long been the principal location where members of the Nipmuc community have convened to carry out cultural practices important in maintaining their historical and contemporary culture.
The most significant of these has been the Annual Hassanamisco Indian Fair, held every July. A number of ceremonial areas and several structures are located within the reservation. Most significant among the structures is a building known as The Homestead, which was originally constructed in 1801, and has been home to the Cisco family, a family prominent in the political and cultural activities of the tribe. Since the earliest contact with non-Natives, the Hassanamisco Reservation parcel has been continuously occupied and managed by Nipmuc tribal members. The Hassanamisco Reservation has been the property of the Nipmuc tribe since before written history, and is considered a traditional cultural property. Narrative Description See Continuation Sheets NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No.
1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page1 Narrative Description The Hassanamisco Reservation is an approximately three-acre property owned by the Nipmuc Nation, located within the town of Grafton in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The property is located at 80 Brigham Hill Road, one mile west of the town's historic center, and just over one-half mile west of the present Grafton town offices on Providence Road (MA route 122, Figure 1). The property has long been the principal location where members of the Nipmuc community have convened to carry out cultural practices important in maintaining their historical and contemporary culture. The most significant of these has been the Annual Hassanamisco Indian Fair, held every July.
The Hassanamisco Reservation has been the property of the Nipmuc tribe since before written history, and is considered a traditional cultural property. The reservation is situated at an elevation of approximately 450 feet (137 meters) above sea level, roughiy halfway up the eastern slope of Brigham Hill, overlooking the valley of the Quinsigamond River. In plan. the reservation property resembles a bent rectangle, approximately 250 feet by 850 feet, oriented roughly northeast-southwest with a 50° bend in the middle (Figure 2). It is characterized by a mixture of open and wooded land. The northern two-thirds of the reservation (the rear of the property) is hardwood forest and the southern third of the property, where the existing structures and most of the other features are located, contains a central open area surrounded by large trees.
A number of ceremonial areas and several structures are located within the reservation. Most significant among the structures is a building known as The Homestead, which was originally constructed in 1801, and has been home to the Cisco family, a family prominent in the political and cultural activities of the tribe. Other structures on the reservation include a "cookhouse" or "cook shack," a storage building that is also utilized for preparing and serving food during the public Annual Hassanamisco Indian Fair and private tribal gatherings and events, and an open pavilion that provides shelter for ceremonial activities.
There is also a ceremonial circle and fire near the pavilion; an open area that once held picnic tables and benches near an old fire pit utilized for clambakes in the first half of the 20" century, and pig roasts more recently; and another ceremonial circle and fire (located in the rear of the property) utilized only for special ceremonial occasions (Figure 3). The Hassanamisco Reservation The Hassanamisco Reservation today is the product of at least 282 years of use by Nipmuc people. First used as a domestic site area, the reservation later became a tribal center, in addition to continuing its function as a home lot associated with some of the principal figures in the tribe's cultural survival. Since the earliest contact with non-Natives, the Hassanamisco Reservation parcel has been continuously occupied and managed by Nipmuc tribal members.
The present-day Hassanamisco Reservation was part (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page _2 of the original Hassanamesitt Plantation, established in 1654 by the Reverend John Eliot. This plantation, located where there was an existing Nipmuc community of the same name, was intended as a mission where Native people would adopt Christian religion and elements of English culture. It was the third in a series of similar plantations, known as "praying towns," established by Puritan missionary John Eliot. The settlement comprised an area approximately four miles square, encompassing about 8,000 acres.
Presently the Hassanamisco Reservation consists of a parcel of approximately three acres (or 130,680 square feet), with several structures and a number of ceremonial areas. On the outer boundary of the reservation, along Brigham Hill Road, there is also a 1930 commemorative plaque that marks the location of the Hassanamisco Reservation as an important historical location within Massachusetts. All are elements contributing to the property's significance. The Homestead The oldest and most important structure on the Hassanamisco Reservation is the Homestead, which was originally constructed in 1801, with subsequent additions and alterations (see Stachiw 2003, Izard et al. 2007, Gould 2010. See attached figure 3 for sketch plan of the Homestead.) The Homestead sits in the front half of the Reservation close to Brigham Hill Road.
From the front of the house (the south elevation) (Photo 1) the land slopes down slightly across an open yard to Brigham Hill Road, approximately 50 feet away, and to the east the land slopes down more steeply, so that the east elevation of the Homestead commands a view of the open southern end of the reservation property. From the north elevation, one faces the large open area down a slope to the right, and a wooded area across a small, level, open yard at the left and center. The view from the west elevation is of woods, open fields, and neighboring buildings across a small open yard The Homestead's present size is just under 1,400 square feet. In plan it is rectangular, measuring approximately 42 by 33 feet. It is a one-story structure, consisting of a gable-roofed core surrounded by shed-roofed additions on the west, south, and east.
From sill to peak, it is approximately 16 feet high at the south, west, and north elevations. The east elevation, which includes seven feet or more of exposed foundation wall, measures approximately 23 feet from ground level to roof peak (Photo 3). The roof is presently covered with a light-brown asphalt shingle (Photo 2). Most of the exterior walls are covered by rough-sawn pine boards with wavy edges, installed between 1959 and 1966, and painted a dark red color. Portions of the south exterior are sheathed with cedar shakes. The porch on the south side, built between 1959 and1965, has been removed. The eastern part of the porch was removed sometime before 1966, and was replaced by the stone wall that presently exists. The remainder of the porch was removed in 2010 as part of the building stabilization and restoration. (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev.
10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page3 The present exterior windows on the south façade are 1/1 vinyl-clad window assemblies. The west façade contains (from north to south) a fixed, wooden, multiple-light sash window, and a double-hung wooden window sash. The north façade windows consist of (from east to west) a double-hung wooden window sash, a vinyl casement window, and a pair of vinyl double-hung windows. The east façade contains (from south to north) two vinyl casement window assemblies, the southernmost with three and the northernmost with one, and two wooden Andersen windows (Izard et al 2007; Paske 2007:6-8). All of the exterior doors were installed during the 1980s.
The east elevation contains two doors set in the foundation wall. The southern door is a single door covered with rustic boards. To the north is a double door. On the north side of the Homestead there is a single door accessed by a series of concrete steps immediately east of the chimney. A single vinyl or steel-clad door in the center of the southern façade serves as a main entrance, and a second, similar door is located near the east end of the south side (Izard et al 2007). A door in the south side of Room 101 (see Plan, Figure 4) led to the south porch; it leads to the exterior now that the south porch has been removed The interior presently consists of several small rooms, exhibiting a variety of wall and floor treatments reflecting the long and varied history and use of the Homestead (Figure 4).
Along the front (south) side of the building are five rooms, numbered in Figure 4 (from west to east) 101, 102, 105, 106, and 108. These rooms, together with rooms 103, 104 (a small room enclosing the stairs to the garret), and 107 make up the original gable-ended house and the east additions. The original Homestead consisted of rooms 101- 103. The original hewn five-sided ridge pole is visible within the garret space above these rooms (Izard et al 2007:19). Rooms 110-112 are located along the rear (northern) part of the house and include a kitchen (room 110) and a bathroom (room 112) (Photo 4). Wall treatments include lath and plaster, painted or whitewashed, or covered by a variety of wallpapers. as well as a variety of 20"*-century wainscoting, paneling, and sheetrock.
In some rooms the lath and plaster have deteriorated or been removed to reveal the underlying studs, framing elements, and exterior with early machine-cut nails. Plaster was decorated with colored whitewash (e.g., a light blue color in room 102). The plaster has deteriorated from several walls, leaving only the exposed lath. Walls in later rooms contain strip lath and modern cut nails. Later rooms were painted or wallpapered, and some painted and wallpapered walls remain (Izard et al 2007; Paske 2007). Ceilings are plaster in most ofthe house, with acoustic tile in the eastern lean-to section(rooms 106-109), sheetrock in room 111, and pine tongue-and-groove boards (room 103). The ceiling in room 101 consists of exposed joists and the garret's sub-floor. These surfaces exhibit multiple layers of whitewash, (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev.
10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page4 indicating that several decades after the structure was built, the ceiling of room 101 was left unplastered, and the exposed joists and garret flooring were whitewashed. The ceiling was later plastered; lath and remnants of plaster can still be seen above ceiling height between garret floor joists along the west wall (Izard et al. 2007:35). Floors are wide wooden boards, plywood, or vinyl (kitchen and bathroom). The kitchen floor is vinyl flooring from extensive kitchen renovations dating from between 1965 and 1985. The bathroom (room 112) also has a vinyl floor, which postdates 1985 (Izard et al. 2007). The building contains three fully excavated cellars.
The foundation, although constructed in stages over a one hundred year period, is of similar construction throughout, built of uncoursed stone rubble. The foundation of the main block of the structure was originally drylaid; subsequently some areas have been pointed with a cementimous mortar. The west wall and sections of the east wall of the west section of the basement have been reinforced with an interior layer of poured concrete. Stone foundation walls underpinning the east lean-to and sections of the rear leanto, along with the wall dividing the west and central sections of the basement, appear to have been originally constructed with a cementimous mortar. A transverse concrete-block wall divides the basement beneath rooms 110 and 109.
Spaces beneath the Homestead can be divided into the following sections: 1) The fully excavated basement beneath rooms 101 and 112; 2) The crawl space beneath rooms 102 and 103; 3) The fully excavated area beneath room beneath rooms 105, 106, and 107; 4) The fully excavated basement beneath rooms 108 and 109; and 5) The partially excavated section below room 110. The fully excavated sections of the basement have been excavated to a depth of approximately 6 feet. Underlying rooms 102 and 103 the crawl space is less than a foot in depth; surrounding this crawl space the depth of the foundation is unknown. Period building practice suggests that the foundation in this area extends to a lesser depth below grade than adjacent foundation walls. The basement below rooms 101 and 112 has a concrete floor with a drainage trench. The other of the basement floors are unpaved (Izard et al.
2007; Paske 2007; Stachiw 2003). There are two brick chimneys. One, located at the ridge in the center of the building, does not presently extend above the roofline. The other is the furnace flue (constructed between 1959 and 1965); it is situated midway along the exterior of the rear (north elevation) wall. Over its more than 200 years of use, the Homestead has undergone many changes, but retains many early features. Documentary and physical investigations of the Homestead (Gould 2010; Izard et al. 2007; (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page5 Stachiw 2003) have identified twelve phases of construction and significant modifications.
Some phases represent major changes, while others, depending on household composition and available financial resources, reflect fairly minimal alterations. The following summary is excerpted from Volume I of the Historic Structure Report for the Homestead (Izard et al 2007:1-6): The original part of the reservation house was built in 1801 for single mother Lucy Gimbee (1768-1843). Lucy was the great-granddaughter of Moses Printer, one of seven Indian proprietors named by the General Court in 1727 when it set the majority of the Hassanamisco Plantation off to white settlers. The house was built (Phase I) as a timber-framed, one-story house with three rooms and a chimney set several yards in from the west gable end. Lucy Gimbee shared the house with her children, Henry ("Harry") Arnold and John and Patience Hector, and others who remain unidentified.
Her sons married in 1816 and 1817, bringing wives, and soon children, into the homestead or into the homestead complex of the framed house and adjacent structure (Izard et al 2007:1). Between 1820 and 1835 (Phase II) the house was expanded, with the addition of a large room at the east end, and the original section was modified. The new room was built with a front entry door, creating the external appearance of a double house. The new room appears to have included a chimney in the northeast corner, a highly irregular feature. Interior remodeling included relocating the stairs along the west wall of the new room. The addition coincided with an increasing number of occupants: in 1810, seven people lived in the house; by 1820 there were twelve people in two households; by 1830, thirteen.
There is also the possibility that the families were using both the timber-framed house and an older Indian habitation next door. The 1831 nominative map, drawn by a near neighbor, shows two closely spaced blocks in the location of the reservation house, the top one marked "John Hector" and the other marked "Harry Arnold." By the 1857 nominative map, the block marked "John Hector" was gone (Izard et al 2007:1-2). In the period of 1835 to 1850 (Phase III), a new chimney was constructed in a central location along the east end wall of the original house and the central doorway in the east-room addition was sealed. In the east-room addition, the corner chimney was removed and the window in the north wall was replaced with a door. During this period ownership shifted from Lucy Gimbee to her son Harry Arnold. Lucy's daughter Patience Hector died in 1829.
Her son John Hector left the reservation permanently around 1841, the same year her grandson James Arnold married. Lucy died in 1843. At the time the 1850 census was taken, the families of Harry Arnold and James Arnold sharedthe reservation house, an arrangement cut short by James' death later in the year (Izard et al 2007:2). In the period of 1850 to 1880 (Phase IV), changes were concentrated in the earlier years, when the young Cisco family returned. Two small rooms were added to the east end of the house around 1855, increasing the living space to 720 square feet. This addition likely coincided with a change in ownership and occupancy. Senior family member Harry Arnold died in August of 1851 and his widow in 1855. Before 1859, (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No.
1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page6 their son's widow and child left the house and their daughter Patience married and moved away. Their daughter Sarah Maria Cisco and her family became sole occupants of the reservation house, though ownership was shared with her sister Patience, both having rights as descendants. Since the original construction of the homestead, the nature of the house and households has suggested a lower income status for the owners; economic struggles were made explicit during this phase. As early as 1859 letters indicate a raging dispute between Sarah Maria Arnold Cisco and a John Sweeny who apparently purchased some five acres of land from her uncle, John Hector, in an unauthorized sale.
Letters, undated and from 1859, indicate her family was struggling and had asked for town assistance for at least a couple of years as a result of this sale and the subsequent abuse of water rights by Mr. Sweeney, which were first conveyed by quitclaim in 1841. In an 1869 letter on this matter, Sarah Maria Cisco stated "we have not land enough to raise our living and pasture for our cow and our house is rather poor too." It did not help that Sarah Maria had suffered from ill health for more than a year and her husband would soon develop incapacitating rheumatism (Izard et al 2007:2-3). By 1889, the date of the first image of the reservation house, the original chimney stack had been removed Little else occurred during the 1880-1920 period (Phase V). The occupants were poor. In 1887 Sarah Maria applied to the General Court for relief as a Hassanamisco Indian who was destitute.
She was awarded an annual annuity of $200, which transferred to her eldest son after her death (skipping her husband, a non- Indian). Like Phase IV, this period was marked by a change in ownership. Sarah Maria died in 1891 at the age of 72, and four years later her infirm husband died at age 86. The house passed to their married son James Lemuel and his single brother Lewis, both of whom already lived there. The 1900 census indicates James worked as a laborer. Lewis, who was listed with no occupation, soon moved away. Around 1906, James and his family moved to another house in town and his sister Delia Hazzard moved into the reservation house with her much older husband who died in 1914. She immediately began petitioning the state for money to make repairs and received more than $400 over seven years before being cut off in 1913.
A Worcester Telegram reporter who wrote a feature story on Delia as the "last Indian" in 1920 described the house as a "wretched little one-story cabin" that was "not much better than a shanty" (Izard et al 2007:3). Cosmetic changes were made between 1920 and 1927 (Phase VI). New two-over-two windows replaced the older sash, larger front doors were installed, and the exterior was sided with shingles. By 1925 electricity was installed in the house. It is possible these improvements were paid for by others, perhaps her brother James or his daughter Sarah. Widow Delia took in boarders, and always struggled financially. The "last Indian" article stated: "she has a pretty hard struggle to get along", "the land yields but a scanty living", "a little financial help would not be amiss." Delia remained in the reservation house until her death in 1930 (Izard et al 2007:4).
(continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 1 Page7 Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA A 1927 photo shows a lean-to addition on the north side of the house, an expansion that coincided with James Cisco's daughter Sarah moving back to the reservation house with her new husband and pre-teen daughter Zara Brough. The rents Sarah collected as landlord of a Worcester property probably financed the improvements she made during this 1927-1935 period (Phase VII). Receipted bills indicate that water was brought into the house by 1928 and a Kalamazoo stove was installed before 1933 (Izard et al 2007:4).
Between 1935 and 1947 (Phase VIII), a full-width addition was made to the east end of the house with its own front entry and the north or rear addition was rebuilt. Though early evidence has been obscured by later changes, it is probable a bathroom or at least a water closet was installed, though not as yet a modern kitchen. In 1938 Sarah was billed for relatively substantial (but unspecified) house repairs. She also filed for a permit to install central heating. These alterations probably related to changes in house use. Sarah's daughter was a college-educated professional working in Washington, D.C., and Sarah's husband was no longer in the picture (he was gone by 1930 and died in Worcester in 1942). Beginning in 1946, she cared for old-age invalids in her house. She also opened the house to tourists.
She prided herself on her knowledge of Indian history and welcomed Boy Scout troops and other visitors; by October of 1948 more than five hundred people had signed her guest book. The new north and east additions with a separate exterior entry would allow the presence of boarders in the house without disturbing Sarah's tours and demonstrations in the older part and in the front yard (Izard et al 2007:4). A 1948 photo shows that the house had been covered with asphalt siding and a car port added to the west end (Sarah had bought a used Pontiac for $20 in 1941). The photo was the illustration for a "last Indian" article in the Worcester Sunday Telegram, in which the author wrote of her tourists, her vegetable garden, her Indian knowledge of wild herbs and their uses, and her piecing together a lot of odd jobs to get by.
Other alterations in this period of 1947 to 1959 (Phase IX) include the installation of an oil burner in 1948 (Izard et al 2007:5). When Sarah needed a hip operation in 1959, her daughter Zara left her career as a fashion designer in New York City to come home and care for the place and her mother. During the period 1959 to 1966 (Phase X), a new front porch that extended the full length of the house was added and the building was covered with rustic siding. Zara lived there alone much of this time as her mother was in a nursing home through 1961 and again before her death in 1964. Formalizing her mother's open-to-tourists idea, in 1962 Zara founded the Hassanamisco Reservation Museum wherein she displayed artifacts, presented native craft skills, and maintained a library.
The museum became the homestead's primary function when Zara accepted a corporate job as vice-president of an electronics and ecological consulting company in Waltham (Izard et al 2007:5). (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page 8 Interior upgrades occurred in the final period of the house, 1985-2006 (Phase XII), probably all within the few years between Zara's retirement around 1985 and her death in January of 1988. They include installation of new exterior doors and some vinyl windows, and new bathroom fixtures. Drywall in the north addition dates to this time (Izard et al 2007:5).
TABLE 1: Phases of Construction and Alterations of the Reservation House (from Izard et al 2007:6).
Phase I: 1810-1820 original construction Phase II: 1820-1835 east addition Phase III: 1835-1850 new stove chimney, interior changes Phase IV: 1850-1880 new east end addition Phase V: 1880-1820 original chimney stack removed Phase VI: 1920-1927 new windows, doors, siding, electricity installed Phase VII: 1927-1935 north lean-to addition, water brought in Phase VIII: 1935-1947 new east addition, north addition rebuilt, open to tourists Phase IX: 1947-1959 asphalt siding, carport, oil burner installed Phase X: 1959-1965 full-length front porch, museum opened Phase XI: 1965-1985 east half of porch removed, interior alterations Phase XII: 1985-2006 interior remodeling; exterior alterations Other Structures and Features The locations of the following structures and features are indicated in Figure 3.
Cookhouse/Cook shack/Storage Building The cookhouse, or cook shack, which presently serves as a storage building as well as a food preparation rea for the Annual Hassanamisco Indian Fair and other tribal gatherings, is located in the southern (front nd of the property, near Brigham Hill Road. It sits a short distance (about 50 feet) downslope (east) fror the Homestead, in an open area that is shaded by some large surrounding trees. It was converted from a building that once served as Zara CiscoeBrough's garage, and was constructed in the early 20t century. This change in function reflects the expansion of the reservation's function from a residential/domestic site to a combined residence and tribal center.
The cookhouse is approximately 21½ feet (north-south) by thirteen feet, and about ten feet high, and has corner and central piers of light brown brick at the corners and along the center of the front (east side) and rear, closed sides of wooden shingles, and a roof of brown asphalt shingles. The eastern side can be opened for use as a counter, over which food is ordered and served during tribal gatherings (Photos 5, 6). (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page_9 Pavilion and Ceremonial Circle and Fire The pavilion and ceremonial circle and fire are located near the eastern boundary of the reservation, at the edge of the open area where ceremonies occur.
The pavilion is an open-sided wooden structure of four cornerposts, with an asphalt-shingle roof approximately sixteen feet (north-south) by nine feet and is fifteen feet high. It is used to store firewood for the ceremonial fire and, during the Annual Hassanamisco Indian Fair and other gatherings, provides shade and shelter for speakers and performers (Photo 8). The ceremonial circle and fire (or council fire) is situated a few feet directly in front of (west of) the pavilion, and houses the ceremonial fire during tribal gatherings. It consists of a circle of fieldstones approximately nine feet in diameter (Photo 7). Old Ceremonial Circle and Fire The old ceremonial circle and fire is located near the northern end of the reservation property in a wooded area. It is similar in plan and construction to the above-described ceremonial circle and fire.
Old Fire Pit and Picnic Table Area The old fire pit is an area of stone, brick, and cinderblock, surrounded by shaded lawn (the picnic table area). It measures approximately 20 feet by ten feet, oriented roughly north-south. It is situated approximately fifteen feet east and three feet south of the southeast corner of the cook shack, and about 20 feet west of the stone wall that marks the eastern property boundary. This area was used for clambakes and other festivities in the first half of the 20* century and more recently for pig roasts (Photo 9). Longhouse Museum The Longhouse Museum was a log cabin "longhouse" that served as a museum space for several decades from 1962 into the 1980s. It was constructed for Zara CiscoeBrough, who used it as a space to store and display artifacts and documents of Nipmuc culture and history. The structure was demolished in the early 21" century.
Stone walls Stone walls are found in two parts of the reservation. One section of wall runs beside (west, Photo 11) and extends behind (north of) the homestead, and currently separates the reservation from the neighboring property of 84 Brigham Hill Road - the parcel sold by John Hector to John Sweeney in 1857 that was once part of the Printer and Gimbee land. Archaeological evidence suggests that the wall was built sometime before or during an expansion (or expansions) of the Homestead (ca. 1820 at the earliest) that left disturbed soils on one side and undisturbed soils on the other. The stone wall seems to date from (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No.
1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page10 either the period when John Hector and Harry Arnold divided their mother's land (1846), or the arrival of John Sweeney in Grafton (1857). Given the acrimonious relationship that existed between Sweeney and Sarah following his arrival in Grafton, the wall's construction most likely dates to the late 1850s, when it served to establish an important boundary between Indian and non-Indian land (as stone walls are a ubiquitous feature across southern New England and often serve as boundary markers (Gould 2010). The second stone wall runs along the eastern boundary of the reservation near Brigham Hill Road, between the picnic table area and the longhouse museum. The wall has a substantial gap just south of the pavilion and ceremonial circle and fire.
The date of this wall and the circumstances surrounding its construction are not known, but it almost certainly dates from the 18" or 19" century (Photo 10). State Historic Marker The Massachusetts Historic Marker is located at the southern edge of the property along Brigham Hill Road, and is situated so as to be read by passersby. The plaque is a metal sign mounted on a metal post, and is one of a series of historical markers erected in 1930 across the Commonwealth by the Massachusetts Bay Tercentenary Commission. It reads: THESE FOUR AND ONE-HALF ACRES HAVE NEVER BELONGED TO THE WHITE MAN, HA VING BEEN SET ASIDE IN 1728 AS AN INDIAN RESERVATOPN BY THE FORTY PROPRIETORS WHO PURCHASED THE PRA YING INDIAN TOWN OF HASSANAMESIT.
This sign clearly acknowledges that the reservation is the last piece of Indian land in Graftona as well as its special and unique status as an "Indian Reservation." It is a compelling piece of evidence coming not from the Cisco family, but from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, demonstrating that the evolution of this place into a tribal reservation had occurred by 1930 (Photo 12). Archaeological Description While no ancient Native American sites are recorded in the Hassanamisco Reservation, sites may exist. Two ancient sites are recorded in the general area (within one mile). Environmental characteristics of the property represent locational criteria (slope, soil drainage, proximity to wetlands) that are favorable for the presence of Native sites. Several areas of the property include well-drained, level to moderately sloping topography, within 1,000 feet of wetlands.
An unnamed tributary stream bisects the property as it drains easterly to Lake Ripple, a dammed portion of the Quinsigamond River. The confluence of the tributary stream and Lake Ripple lies approximately one-quarter mile east of the property. Most of the town of Grafton, including the reservation area, is located within the Blackstone River drainage. Potential (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Hassanamisco Reservation Grafton (Worcester), MA Section number 7 Page11 ancient sites in this area may include small temporary campsites focused on resource exploitation in terior upland areas. Similar settlement and resource use of the nominated area may extend into tl istoric period.
Given the above information, known settlement densities in the interior uplands o Central Massachusetts, and the size of the parcel (approximately 3 acres), a moderate to high potential exists for locating ancient Native American resources on the property. A high potential exists for the recovery of historic archaeological resources on the Hassanamisco Reservation property, though most of it remains to be documented. Native American occupation of the property can be documented since ca. 1800, with the potential for occupation dating to the 18 century or earlier. Structural evidence and builder's trenches may contribute additional evidence relating to the initial construction date for the Homestead and later stages of its evolutionary history.
Additional documentary evidence, combined with archaeological survey and testing, might also identify other residential structures that were located on the property. Earlier structures may include European-style residences, traditional Native American structures, or a combination of both architectural styles. Similar documentary, architectural, and archaeological evidence may exist for barns, outbuildings, and other structures no longer extant on the property. Documentary and archaeological evidence may also exist for occupational-related features (trash pits, privies, wells) that were located on the property. Archaeological investigations at the reservation have been limited to test excavations surrounding the Homestead. Testing has not been completed for most of the reservation.
Archaeological investigations at this site have determined that the area immediately surrounding the Homestead has been significantly disturbed by repeated expansions to the building and landscaping processes. (end) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 Hassanamisco Reservation Name of Property 8. Statement of Significance