BlockThe nomination, in full
Bibliography, boundary description, and the people who prepared and reviewed the nomination.
- FORM B - BUILDING MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION 80 BOYLSTON STREET BOSTON, MA 02116 Amendment to the Worcester Multiple Resource Area (NR: 1980) AREA FORM NO. 130-(S-2) Town Worcester Address 43. Austin Street Historic Name Willard Richmond Apartment Block Staple to left side of form. Sketch Map: Draw map showing property's location in relation to nearest cross streets and/or geographical features. Indicate all buildings between inventoried property and nearest intersection(s). Indicate north Use: Present vacant Original apartments DESCRIPTION Date 1879-1886 Source atlasses Style_Italianate/Eclectic Architect _unknown Exterior Wall Fabric brick, granite trim Outbuildings none Major Alterations (with dates) doors replaced; windows replaced (1980s) Condition Fair/Good See attached map.
Moved no DateNA Acreage less than one acre Setting _at intersection in mixed residen- tial/apartment/commerical area, some vacant lots. UTM REFERENCE 19/268490/4682320 USGS QUADRANGLE Worcester North Quadrangle SCALE 1: 25000 Vacnie laemase shpo 9|26/85 Recorded by Sarah Zinmerman w/S. Ceccaci Organization Mass. Historical Conmission Date August, 1985 OCT 7 1985 NATIONAL REGISTER CRITERIA STATEMENT (if applicable) The "Willard Richmond" apartment block was one of the earliest apartment houses built in the Main-Wellington-Chandler Street area, which, by 1900, was Worcester's largest apartment district. A modest expression of the transition from Italianate to Panel Brick styling, the building is a well-preserved and early example of apartment block construction in Worcester. As such, the "Willard Richmond" apartment block meets criteria A and C of the National Register on the local level.
ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE Describe important architectural features and evaluate in terms of other buildings within the community. The Willard Richmond Apartment Block is a modest four-story brick apartment block built between 1879 and 1886. The building, which is square in plan with a small inset jog in the southwest corner, 1s located at the corner of Austin and Irving Streets just west of Worcester's central business district. The building rises from a granite raised basement with segmental arched windows to a granite water table. It presents two facades, both of seven bays' width. On the north elevation, ornamental detail is focused in the central bay. of round-arched windows surmounted by a two-story window bay with a barched windous surmounea Above a shed-roofed entrance hood on the first floor are a pair rectangular base, terra-cotta tile spandrel and round-arched upper section.
The west elevation is more irregular in appearance. It consists of seven bays Continued HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE Explain the role owners played in local or state history and how the building relates to the development of the community. Apartment construction in the Main-Wellington-Chandler Street area began in the early to mid-1880s and continued into the early 20th century. During the 19th century, smaller concentrations of apartment buildings also appeared in the Pleasant Street area to the north, around Lincoln Square to the northeast and in the vicinity of Millbury Street and Quinsigamond Avenue to the east. Extensive late 20th century demolition in the Chandler Street area has left only a few early apartment blocks standing in the main-wellington-Chandler Street area.
The "Willard Richmond" and "The Russell" across the street at 49 Austin Street, both highly visible, are important reminders of the earlier days of the neighborhood. Like most Worcester apartment blocks of the period, its occupants were mostly of the middle class. Many were boarders. Despite the fact that a large proportion of the city's increase in population during this period was due to foreign immigration, the occupants of apartment blocks in this area were rarely newly-arrived 1mmigrants. Although there was a high proportion of Irish living in this section of Austin Street, the 1896 directory shows that most of the building's occupants were not Irish.
Continued BIBLIOGRAPHY and/or REFERENCES atlases, maps, directories clipping file (Willard Richmond) WHM 8/85 INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION Office of the Secretary, Boston Commmity : Worcester Form No: 130-(S-2) Property Name: 43 Austin Street Willard Richmond Apt. Indicate each item on inventory form which is being continued below. ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE continued of irregularly spaced fenestration. From north to south these are arranged with two bays containing single windows, followed by two bays of paired windows, a fifth bay of single windows, a stairhall bay whose windows are set lower and a final bay of paired windows. The entrance on the west elevation is contained within the stairhall bay and features a round-arched transom. A triangular brick parapet on a rectangular base is centered on the roofline above the central bay.
Windows on the first floor are rectangular in configuration with granite sills and lintels. Soldier courses of brick are set between the windows and support a granite string course. Second and third floor windows are segmental arched and rest on granite sills. Round-arched windows on the fourth floor define a deep cornice of ornamental brickwork. The round arches are set within double bands of brick and accented with granite keystones. The spring of the arch rises from a soldier course of brick circling the building. Above the windows is a dentillated frieze surmounted by a metal boxed cornice. In the 1980s, original wooden sash was removed and replaced with inappropriate aluminum sliding sash. At the same time, the doors were replaced.
There have been no other alterations to the building, although a rehabilitation in accord- ance with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation is going to take place. Staple to Inventory form at bottom INVENTORY FORM CONTINUATION SHEET MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION Office of the Secretary, Boston Commmity: Worcester Form No: 130-(S-2) Property Name: 43 Austin Street Willard Richmond Apt. Indicate each item on inventory form which is being continued below. HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE continued The "Willard Richmond" first appeared on the 1886 Worcester atlas as the property of Willard Richmond, a dealer in real estate. Richmond (1823-1916) came to Worcester from Rhode Island as a young man.
After a number of years in the tailoring business, he turned his interest to real estate.To his credit is the construction of numerous Worcester buildings, including some of the city's first "skyscrapers. He is best known as the developer of land near his home at 835 Pleasant Street as "Richmond Heights" at the turn of the century- Architecturally, the "Willard Richmond" is a modest but well-preserved example of transitional Italianate/Panel Brick styling and a good example of the type of apartment block construction that first began to appear in Worcester in the early 1880s. While the actual date of construction of the building is unknown, stylistic evidence, primarily the use of terra-cotta tile, suggests a date in the early 1880s.
Noteworthy features of the building are its use of Italianate elements, such as its boxy shape, round-arched windows and projecting cornice, in combination with Panel Brick enrichments and eclectic fenestration. In addition, it should be noted that the lack of ground floor storefronts indicates the exclusively residential nature of the "Willard Richmond." Built before 1886, the "Willard Richmond" is among the earliest identified apartment blocks in Worcester. Other recorded earlyapartment blocks include the Robinson and Swan Block (1084-85), the hall Bullding (188), the Boynton (1887) and the Windsor (1887-88). Like the "Willard Richmond" , all of these are brick buildings in late Victorian styles.
Staple to Inventory form at bottom NPS Form 10-900-a (3-82) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form OMB No. 1024-0018 Exp. 10-31-84 For NPS use only received 5-3-84 date entered Continuation sheet Item number Page / of/ Multiple Resource Area Thematic Group dnr-11 Name State Worcester Multiple Resource Area Worcester County, MASSACHUSETTS Nomination/Type of Review 1. Worcester Corset Company Factory Keeper Date/Signatúre towa hasmega yim Substantive Review Attest 2. Malvern Road School Keeper Substantive Review Bomar habnpat o144 Attest 3. Claremont Street Historic District Keeper T.S substantive Beviow Attest 4. Richmond, Willard, Apartment Entered in the Keeper Block National Hogister Attest 5. Russell (The) Entered in the Iottonl Mesister fKeeper Attest 6.
Aurora Hotel Substantive Revlew -for/ieper DelmBgun 11/1185 Selan Bya 111/85 7. Holy Name of Jesus Complex datiosri Hoglate Patrick Anduus 4/28188 BettXSaunge 428/88 fakeeper, Aelanpyur 4/5/88 Vendome and the St. Ives 9. (. Shaarai Torah Synagogue Attest Sosstantve RoregtiopBet Sarge -030 Entepled in the Watlonal Registifeeper STh44e Attest 10. Keeper Attest WASO Form - 177 ("R" June 1984) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES EVALUATION/RETURN SHEET Richmond, Willard, Apartment Block (Worcester MRA) Worcester County MASSACHUSETTS REx # 85002783 resubmission nomination by person or local government owner objection appeal Substantive Review: -sample Reviewer's comments: -request Eatem: ed Hatfone] -appeal Working No. OCT 07 1985 Fed. Reg.
Date: 2/3/82 Date Due:11/7/85= 11/21/81 Action: -ACCEPT - 11-2-55 -RETURN - -REJECT - Federa Agency: - LNR 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) 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 J 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 43 Austin ST worcest er will Rich. APT BlOc Richmend, Willard, Apartmet Blec hercesto MRA IRA, Ma RollI-13 24 102 03 98 95 DEIVOLSA AUSTIN STRE STREET C ] 130X-C CHANDLER IRVING FORM 142-T- 'AQUESAVE. ELLINGTON 6 church 76 *x STREET ST. <130X-G not* 459,000 SEE 88 Q2 IRVING STREET MURRAY AVE. MAP SNEET ASSESSOR'S MAPCITY OF WORCESTER MOORE SURVEY & MAPPING CO., 1975 SHEET#130 SCALE : 1"=100' Cert #P284880607 DAUH TND LIRATATDO The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Otfice of the Secretary of State Michael Joseph Connolly, Secretary Massachusetts Historical Commission Valerie A. Talmage Executive Director State Historic Preservation Officer September 30, 1985 Carol Shull, Keeper National Register of Historic Places Dept. of the Interior, National Park Service P.o. Box 37127 Washington, D.C. 20013-7127 Dear Ms.
Shull: I hereby request that the Multiple Resource Area nomination to the National Register for Worcester, Massachusetts be amended to include the following properties: "The Russel1", 49 Austin Street Willard Richmond Apartment Block, 43 Austin Street As the designated State Historic Preservation Office 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. The evaluated significance of these properties is local. The property has been voted eligible by the State Review Board. Owners were notified of pending State Review Board consideration 30-75 days before the meeting and were afforded the opportunity to comment. Comments received to date are attached to the nomination forms.
Sincerely, Valuie lalmgge Valerie A. Talmage Executive Director State Historic Preservation Officer Massachusetts Historical Commission VT/dr enclosure 80 Boylston Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02116 (617) 727-8470 OCT 7 1985