Nomination for East Attleborough Academy

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

NPS Form 10-900 (3-82) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form See instructions in How to Complete National Register Forms Type all entries-complete applicable sections 1. Name historic EAST ATTLEBOROUGH ACADEMY and or common 2. Location Superintendent's Office street & number 28 Sanford Street Attleboro city, town state Massachusetts 3. Classification Category district Ownership public x building(s) private _ structure both site Public Acquisition . object in process being considered N/A vicinity of 025 code county Bristol Status occupied unoccupied work in progress Accessible - yes: restricted yes: unrestricted no Present Use agriculture commercial - educational entertainment government industrial military 4.

Owner of Property name City of Attleboro street & number 29 Park Street city, town Attleboro N/A vicinity of 5. Location of Legal Description state courthouse, registry of deeds, etc. Bristol County Registry of Deeds Court Street street & number Taunton city, town state MA 6. Representation in Existing Surveys Inventory of the Historic Assets title of the Commonwealth has this property been determined eligible? date 1/21/71, updated 1985 federal state depository for survey records Massachusetts Historical Commission Boston city, town state MA OMB No. 1024-0018 Exp. 10-31-84 For NPS use only received MAR date entered 6 1985 APR 4 1985 N/Anot for publication code 005 museum park private residence _ religious scientific transportation _ other: MA yes x no county X local 7.

Description ATTLEBORO: EAST ATTLEBORO ACADEMY Condition _ excellent - good fair deteriorated ruins unexposed Check one unaltered X altered Check one - original site x- moved date 1874, returned to original site 1889 Describe the present and original (if known) physical appearance

Description of the property

The East Attleborough Academy, built in 1843, is a Greek Revival school building near the center of Attleboro, Massachusetts. The Academy sits on a 1.8-acre lot in the block bounded by Sanford, North Main, Dean and Bank Streets. Located at the east end of the lot, the school is set well back from Sanford Street and faces almost due south. In front of the building, the unlandscaped lot slopes gently down to the street, while to the west a parking lot occupies the remainder of the site. The East Attleborough Academy is a text book example of the Greek Revival style in its classical temple form. It has a rectangular plan three bays wide and four bays deep. The building stands two stories high, and has a shallow gabled roof. To the rear, is a shallow two-story addition.

The south gable end faces Sanford Street, and serves as a pediment for the full-width, Doric colonnaded porch that is the building's most prominent feature. Although the Academy was moved from its site in 1874, it was returned to its original site that year. In the 1960s, a modular home was attached to the building on its west elevation, connnected to the original building only by a narrow passageway. While this the City of Attleboro in the summer of 1984. Built of wood, the school currently rests on a high brick foundation. Underneath the brick foundation is the original rough-hewn granite toundation, which extends only around the main block and indicates the original perimeters of the building. The entire foundation has been painted black. The building is sheathed in wood clapboard painted white. This is presumed to be the original siding.

The roof is covered with asphalt shingles of undetermined age. The Academy's primary elevation is dominated by its handsome colonnaded portico. Four fluted Doric columns, constructed of wood, support the gable-end pediment. The columns rest on short, square bases and have simple, classical Doric capitals. They support a broad, flat frieze divided into two parts by a narrow dentilated decorative band. A simple cornice surmounts this frieze. The pediment above is unadorned except for the wide trim outlining it. The porch is reached by a flight of five wooden steps located between the two center columns. Behind the columns, the facade is broken by a central entrance with a pedimented door surround that is flanked by Doric pilasters.

The pediment retlects the larger gable above, although the lower part of the frieze (below the dentilated band) is obscured by a sign reading "Superintendent of Schools". The door is an early twentieth-century replacement with three horizontal panels below a large pane of glass. Behind the colonnade on the building's facade, the corners are marked by Doric pilasters with long, narrow, recessed center panels. NPS Form 10-900-a (3-82) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form Attleboro: East Attleborough Continuation sheet Academy Item number 7 EXP. 0-30-9-0018 For NPS use only recelved date entered Page APR 1 4 1985 The side elevations are of identical design. Doric pilasters like those on the main facade frame the four-bay elevations.

Four symmetrically spaced windows appear on both the first and second floors. The window sash is 6/6 double-hung, with the muntins painted black. The windows are surrounded by Flat boards and capped with simple entablatures. On the second floor, these entablatures butt up against the broad frieze that continues around the building from the south elevation. As previously noted, the west elevation was altered by a modular addition; the sill of the first floor window in the second bay from the front was lowered to provide an access door for this addition. The first three window bays on the first floor are missing their entablature The city plans to fully restore this elevation to match the east elevation, which remains unaltered. The rear, north elevation is also framed by pilasters, but the pediment on this facade is broken rather than closed.

The one-bay deep, two-story, flat-roofed addition covers three quarters of this elevation, but does not obscure the cornice line. The only fenestration on the addition is on the west side, where there is a single window on the first floor and a door on the second floor. The door leads to an iron fire escape, which wraps around the rear of the addition. A narrow brick chimney, dating to the installation of a new furnace in the early twentieth century, rises up through the fire escape on the north side of the addition. The building originally had a single large classroom on each of the two The first floor was partitioned for the offices of the Attleboro Superintendent of Schools ca. 1900. The second floor was similarly partitioned in the 1920s or 1930s. Original wood floors have been carpeted. Windows and doors may retain their original trim beneath twentieth-century paneling.

only significant interior feature remaining is the staircase, but even its railing and newel posts have been somewhat altered. The original terminal newel post has been discovered in the building's attic, although there are no immediate plans for interior restoration. The attic is unfinished and used for storage. The Academy's parcel stands within the area of a recorded but largely one of seven known sites within a hado mileted pre propeie ar haeentsalhistoric rhaseogal ressireesnclde half mile of the property. scriral Seron pitor historie lecs de he slriecture (pitor (ses ar intromtres 8.

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

Significance ATTLEBORO: EAST ATTLEBORO ACADEMY Period prehistoric 1400-1499 1500-1599 1600-1699 1700-1799 X 1800-1899 1900- Areas of Significance - Check and justify below X archeology-prehistoric community planning x archeology-historic . agriculture * architecture art commerce communications engineering exploration/settlement industry nventior Specific dates 1843 Statement of Significance

Statement of significance

(in one paragraph) Builder Architect landscape architecture law literature military music philosophy politics government unknown religion science sculpture social/ humanitarian theater transportation other (specify) nateraats, woeknanseh a aderyngo sesses inationte iooaoedtin noaesas otring, materials, workmanship, feeling, and assocation. Located in what was East Attleborough Village, the building is an important element in the history of education in Attleboro, serving first as a private academy and later as the first home for the East Attleborough High School. In addition, it is a fine example of institutional Greek Revival architecture and is the temple-front Greek Revival building in Attleboro. The EastAttleborough Academy meets criteria A and C on the local level for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

Although the town of Attleborough was established in 1694, the area now known as Attleboro Center (the shortened spelling was adopted by the city in 1887) was not settled until the turn of the nineteenth century. While earlier settlement had been in what is now North Attleboro, by the 1790s population growth had shifted to the east along the Bungay River, an area which afforded good waterpower sites. With the growth of East Attleborough Village as both an economic and residential center, a need for schools to provide for the education of Attleborough children arose. To meet this need, a number of one-room schoolhouses were built in the 1810s and 1820s, several of which still stand (although converted to residences). By 1840, however, the community had a need for more elaborate educational facilities than could be provided in a one-room schoolhouse.

group of Attleboroughcitizens banded together to form a proprietorship for the purpose of fostering higher education in the town. In the next few years, the Proprietors of Academy Hall were able to sell nearly 110 shares at a price of $12.50 per share. The money raised in this manner was to be put toward the construction of an Academy building. Actual construction was delayed until a building site was found in 1843, when a plot of land at the edge of the village was donated to the Proprietors by Nathaniel W. Sanford. Nothing is known of Sanford beyond the generosity of his gift. ownership of the property. ein ce Fropi eno ps hita ie as tecd tor dlicat ont prpoas o fe the prepety ceased to be used for educational purposes, ownership was to revert back to Nathaniel Sanford's heirs. The Proprietors erected the Academy building in 1843.

Neither the architect, if there was one, nor the builder is known."The proprietors chose to build a relatively high-style Greek Revival building, with one large classroom on each 9.

The rest of the file

Bibliography, boundary description, and the people who prepared and reviewed the nomination.

Major Bibliographical References Daggett, John, "The Sketch of the History of Attleborough," Press of Samuel Usher, Boston, 1894. Attleborough High School Yearbook, 1932. Letter, from Robert S. Oroian, City Soliciter, to Mayor Gerald J. Keane, November 8, 1982. Record of Deed Search on the East Attleborough Academy. 10. Geographical Data 1.8 acres Acreage of nominated property Quadrangle name Attleboro UT M References A L9 B10|5 90 Zone Easting CL1 EL GL 4p4plpe/ Northing Verbal boundary description and justification See attached Assessors Map. Quadrangle scale 1:24,000 B Zone DLL 1ILu Easting Northing LLILLL List all states and counties for properties overlapping state or county boundaries state N/A code county code state code county code 11.

Form Prepared By Mary Kate Sampson, MHC, with Ruth Nerney and Marian Wrightinton, Attleboro name/title Historical Commission organization Massachusetts Historical Commission date December, 1984 street & number 80 Boylston St. telephone (617) 727-8470 city or town Boston State MA 12. State Historic Preservation Officer Certification The evaluated significance of this property within the state is: national state local As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89- 665), I hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated according to the criteria and procedures set forth by the National Park Service.

title State Historic Preservation Officer signature Executive Director State Historic Preservation Officer Valeie ATalmage date Fetvary 18, 185 For NPS use only hereby eertify that this property is included in the National Register uvrestjyeu Entered 1n Natione] Keeper of the National Register the eister date 4/4/85- Attest: Chief of Registration date U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1983 0 - 419-311 NPS Form 10-900-a (3-82) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination Form Attleboro: East Attleborough Continuation sheet Academy Item number 8 EXp.

0-0--0019 For NPS use only received date entered APR 4 1985 Page 1 The choice of this style is significant, for all of the earlier choolhouses in Attleborough had been simple chee hayses ig witlea sidehadbeenonite 1 onessdery steuneures ndiralk, Revival Academy carried a sense of dignity and grandeur that far surpassed these earlier schools. The Academy is, in fact, the only temple-front Greek Revival building (institutional or residential) built in Attleborough. The building was used as a private Academy until 1864, when the school appears to have closed. Ownership of the property then reverted to Anna H. S. Crane, the sole heir of Nathaniel Sanford, according to the terms of the original Two years later, Anna Crane and her husband, Jonathan Crane, deeded all of their right, title, and interest in the property to Capron Peck, a farmer residing in Attleborough.

Despite its change in ownership, the building was soon in use again as a On April 1 1867, Attleborough voted to establish its first public high schools, one in East Attleborough and one in North Attleborough. The East High School opened that year in the upper story of the Academy building. The first principal of East High School was Calvin A. Hill. In that first year he was responsible for the education of twenty students. Although the records are unclear, it appears that the Academy building was moved from its original location to a nearby site in 1874. The East High School moved with the building, and remained in the Academy until 1882. the Academy was moved again, back to its original location. A new brick foundation was laid over the old foundation, and the rear ell was built at the same time.

Around 1900, the first floor of the building became the home of the offices of the Superintendent of Schools of Attleboro. The city seems to have rented the building from Capron Peck and his heirs during this period. In 1920, the City of Attleboro was able to purchase the property, and has owned it since that The offices of the Superintendent of Schools remain on the first floor. while the second floor is currently occupied by the Attleboro Historical Commission. Additional investigation of the prehistoric archeological resources of the site are necessary before a determination of significance can be made. Historic archeological significance is deemed to be low to moderate. 175 320L 89,33 106 18,860 MAIN 19,093 ST. Map by Americaw Air Surveys, Inc 90 7 PENN. AVE. PITTSBURGH, PA. 4-27-64 Scale 1"=80' 76.55 97.2 155 East Attleborough Academy Attleborough, Mt 56 DEAN ST.

58 58 286 59 57 1.8 ACRES 18,2/2 163 82 BANK ST. 203 235 SANFORO ST. 759 PAGE 31 LOT#19 WASO Form - 177 ("R" June 1984) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES EVALUATION/RETURN SHEET East Attleborough Academy Bristol County MASSACHUSETTS resubmission nomination by person or local government owner objection L appeal Substantive Review: L sample Reviewer's comments: Wrequest Batered in Mationel1 appeal Working No. MAR 6 1985 Fed. Reg. Date: 2 4/86 Date Due: 474/85 - 4/20/83 Astion: LACCEPT - 4-4-85 iesec -_ RETURN _REJECT Federal Agency: J NR decision Recom./Criteria Reviewer Discipline Date _ see continuation sheet Nomination returned for: _ technical corrections cited below substantive reasons discussed below 1. Name 2. Location 3. Classification Category Ownership Public Acquisition 4. Owner of Property 5.

Location of Legal Description 6. Representation in Existing Surveys Has this property been determined eligible? yes -no 7. Description Condition excellent good fair deteriorated ruins unexposed Check one unaltered altered Describe the present and original (if known) physical appearance summary paragraph completeness clarity alterations/integrity dates boundary selection Status Accessible Present Use Check one - original site - moved date 8. Significance Period Areas of Significance-Check and justify below Specific dates Builder/Architect Statement of Significance (in one paragraph) J summary paragraph completeness clarity applicable criteria justification of areas checked relating significance to the resource context relationship of integrity to significance J justification of exception other 9. Major Bibliographical References 10.

Geographical Data Acreage of nominated property Quadrangle name UTM References Verbal boundary description and justification 11. Form Prepared By 12. State Historic Preservation Officer Certification The evaluated significance of this property within the state is: national state _local State Historic Preservation Officer signature date title 13. Other Maps Photographs Other Questions concerning this nomination may be directed to _ Signed - Date - _ Phone: Comments for any item may be continued on an attached sheet NTENDE.T OF SCHOO EAST ATTLEBORO ACADEMY 28 Sanford Street Attleboro, MA Photogr: Steve McGuire, 1979