BlockThe nomination, in full
Bibliography, boundary description, and the people who prepared and reviewed the nomination.
FORM B - BUILDING MAY 2 3 1989 MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION 80 BOYLSTON SIREET BOSTON, MA 02116 739 Town Address AREA D Wakefield FORM NO. 323 61 Prosnect Street Historic Name Jonas Cowdry House Photo (3"x3" or 3"x5*, black and white) Indicate address of property on back of photo. 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 Outbuildings . contributing - 0 non-contributing - 3 Use: Present Original Dwelling Dwelling DESCRIPTION Date C.1833 Source Ruth Woodbury Style Federal Architect NA Exterior Wall Fabric Clapboard outbuildings Garage, Tool shed, well enclosure noncontributing. MajorAlterations (withdates) 2 additions on north.
Condition Good Movea NA Date NA Acreage _ 1% acres Setting Set back from road on raised lot behind a fieldstone wall UIM REFERENCE USGS QUADRANGLE SCALE 19/328640/4707730 Reading, Mass. 1:25,000 Recorded by Architectural Preservation Associates "Organization Wakefield Historical - Date Commission March 1985 NATIONAL REGISTER CRITERIA STATEMENT (1f applicable) Wakefield is fortunate to have a large number of 3/4 houses existing from the Federal Period, of which this house is a well preserved examp The south door surround is unusually fine. The Cowdry family was one the early settlers of Redding and the family retained ownership of thi house for nearly a century - an unusually long period of continuity. Ihe house retains integrity of location, setting, design, materials, workmanship, feeling and association and meets Criterion C of the NRHP on the local level.
ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE Describe important architectural features and evaluate in terms of other buildings within the community. Wakefield has an unusually large number of 3/4 houses remaining from the first decade of the 19th c. included among which is this house, a Federal farmhouse, 2½ stories in height, three bays wide with a large central chimney. Its major stylistic feature is the entablature door surround on the south facade, a finely proportioned Federal surround with the classically composed entablature and sidelights favored by housewrights of the period. HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE Explain the role owners played in local or state history and how the building relates to the development of the conmunity.
This house has long confused Wakefield's historians but Ruth Woodbury town historian, provided the most convincing interpretation of available records confirmed by stylistic evidence. William Cowdry was among the first settlers to the territory called Redding in the 17th c. He settled where #71 Prospect Street is today and the hill behind his farm became know as Cowdry's Hill. His house was later replaced, but Cowdrys continued to own and farm the land and Nathaniel Cowdry's two sons Aaron and Jonas almost simultaneously built this house and the one at 98 Prospect Street c. 1833. The land continued to be farmed although in smaller sections until the latter decades of the 19th c. when development of Cowdry's Hill and the land south of Prospect Street began. The house remained in the family until c. 1900. BIBLIOGRAPHY and/or REFERENCES Merrill, Morrison. Wakefield's Old Houses.
Wakefield, 1951. Eaton, Lilley. Genealogical History of Reading, Boston, 1874 Wakefield Historical Society, Vertical Files, Ruth Woodbury notes. Maps of 1889 (W.E. Cowdry), 1906 (Waldo E. Cowdry). NPS Form 10-000 (8-86 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number - Page OMB Approvel No. 1024-0018 Multiple Resource Area Thematic Group Name State Wakefield MRA Middlesex County, MASSACHUSETTS Nomination/Type of Review Cover 1. Beacon Street Tomb Substantive Review Entered in the National Reglater 2. Beebe Homestead Entered tr the National Begister 3. Boardman, E., House ant-rod in the datlonad Beglater 4. Boit, Elizabeth, House Entered in the National Regleter 5.Building at 35--37 RichardsonAvenue Mationad Jogiater 6. Building at 38--48 Richardson Avenue Intered in tha National Register 7.
Center Depot Entered in the National Regiater 8. Church--Lafayette Streets Eteret 10 +hy Historic District detiuial. Joclstaz 9. Common District 10.
Cowdry, Jonas, House Entered in the National Begister Srkeeper /Keeper Date/Signature Bitht Surge 7/45 AlmesSze 7/6/89 Attest /Keeper AuluueBze 7/0/04 Attest Lxeper AllmnBaga 116/87 Attest keeper, Zeloua 13za 7/6/9 Attest AhlmsSzeu 7/6/86 Attest LKeeper TheemeByu02/6/84 Attest L*eeper AelnusByu 2/6/89 Attest /Keeper AlbuDsen7/6/9 Attest frkeeper BettSnge 30/20 Attest /Keeper Alelreytsen 116/89 Attest UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES EVALUATION/RETURN SHEET REQUESTED ACTION: NOMINATION PROPERTY Cowdry, Jonas, House NAME: MULTIPLE NAME: Wakefield MRA STATE & COUNTY: MASSACHUSETTS, Middlesex DATE RECEIVED: DATE OF 16TH DAY: DATE OF WEEKLY LIST: 5/23/89 6/22/89 DATE OF PENDING LIST: 6/06/89 DATE OF 45TH DAY: 7/07/89 REFERENCE NUMBER: 89000739 NOMINATOR: STATE REASONS FOR REVIEW: APPEAL: N DATA PROBLEM: N LANDSCAPE: N LESS THAN 50 YEARS: N OTHER: N PDIL: N PERIOD: N PROGRAM UNAPPROVED: REQUEST: N SAMPLE: N SLR DRAFT: N NATIONAL: N N COMMENT WAIVER: N VACCEPT RETURN REJECT 7/6/89 DATE Entered in the National Register ABSTRACT/SUMMARY COMMENTS: RECOM./CRITERIA REVIEWER DISCIPLINE DATE DOCUMENTATION see attached comments Y/N see attached SLR ./N CLASSIFICATION _count resource type STATE/FEDERAL AGENCY CERTIFICATION FUNCTION historic current DESCRIPTION architectural classification materials descriptive text 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 justification of exception other BIBLIOGRAPHY GEOGRAPHICAL DATA acreage UTMS verbal boundary description boundary justification ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTATION/PRESENTATION sketch maps OTHER COMMENTS USGS maps _photographs presentation Questions concerning this nomination may be directed to Phone Signed Date D 323 61 Prospect 87 ChOV Jore Wakdield MRA Ma 10842 1 100 sW4A 60LD2 100- W44000g 10000 $W5 9746 100 8000 W5 : 6.
8000 WI42 :00. 7000 WI32 100. 5688 W21 19.35 9133 100. 9914 894 W6 WI2A 80. 80. DAVIDSON 145.0 W7A 916923 165.02 W20 13-1 12 323 V.19 RD 105. 18483 6789 1295.31 2 12 05 5128 50.0l 6/01 20950 zistl 98 57 SIa 90.66 73 70. 73B 58 127 EUSTIS 65.5 90.5 73A 75 59 127 75 70.5 75A 9100 225.6 7854 7.5 189.62 20300 30016 13500 8+.+6 TH9 :74 06636.49 1.48 17.15 -25168 18059 30555 10578 204 49 80A 284.15 21751 80B 250. 60.02 82 83 11.37 81 109.63 40326 80 30. .r. D323 10974 80 4A 6A 100.0 WEST 61 PROSPECTSTREET WALTET: oi, WII 9177 31410 T20. 11445 0250 11.02 5441 60A GIA L.c. 37800 62 133.66 63 130.92 64 60 110. 61 2.1 4i65 T2S 78 8050 76 8o. 76A 31. T/B 10744 6600 5t. ITA 590d 6037 8376 16230 13684 1375 19040 105.20 É 7041 79A* FE. 6882 79 % 117 11139 86° 13250 99.82 1.43 Acres 84A - 84,52 85 4.45 STREET 11a32 9880 87 99/3 84 $7 3.00 N - SCALE: 1'=80' I uur AVE. 85.
90 9| 71.19 88 1291 94.16 88B 6724 89 13416 1364 14309 92 T10 9339 100.5 11022 25989 35 1007 63.20 94A 14:°8 98.a 92 35463 Scnool 93 9905 Note: Lots with prefix letter "K"have numbers the sameasshownon KelseyPlon (BK.249PlJ3) "B" Bortlett HillPlon(Bk.216Pl.47) WaltonPlon (8K262 P1.26) Numbers not used 10-11-12 -13-15-16-17-18-19-20-22-23-24 -25-26-27-28-23 - 31-32-33-34 - 35-37 - 38-39 - 41- 42-48-49-50-51- 52- 96 - K 56 -K 6 4 Scale: 1 inch equals 80 feet REVISED 1987 A.W.Carleton Civil Enc Please refer to the map in the Multiple Property Cover Sheet for this property Multiple Property Cover Sheet Reference Number: 64000300