Nomination for Palmer School

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) RECENED 2280 OMB No. 1024-0018 122 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service JAN 2 31996 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 How to Complete the National Register of Historic Places Registration Form (National Register Bulletin 16A). Complete each item by marking "x" in the appropriate box or by entering the information requested. 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 entries and narrative items on continuation sheets (NPS Form 10-900a). Use a typewriter, word processor, or computer, to complete all items. 1. Name of Property historic name__PALMER SCHOOL other names/site number LITTLE RED SCHOOLHOUSE or DISTRICT NO. 2 SCHOOL 2. Location street & number_33 Main Street city or town_ Boxford state_Massachusetts _ code_MA county_Essex code 009 N/A not for publication N/A vicinity .zip code 01921 3. State/Federal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1986, as amended, I hereby certify that thisA 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 A meets O does not meet the National Register Criteria. I recommend that this property be considered significant O nationally - statewide [Xlocally. ( See continuation sheet for additional comments.) udit B. M.Donongh Sighature of certifying official/Title Judith B/McDonough, Executive Director 1/20/98 Masgachusetts Historical Commission, State Historic Preservation Officer State or Federal agency and bureau In my opinion, the property - meets - does not meet the National Register criteria. ( See continuation sheet for additional Comments.) Signature of certifying official/Title State or Federal agency and bureau 4. Nattonal Park Service Certification I, hereby certify that this property is: entered in the National Register - See continuation sheet. - determined eligible for the National Register - See continuation sheet.

- determined not eligible for the National Register - removed from the National Register - other (explain): Date leplin Ht Ball Date of Action 2/20/98 Palmer School Name of Property Essex, Massachusetts County and State 5. Classification Ownership of Property (Check as many boxes as apply) _private X public-local - public-State - public-Federal (Check only one box) X building(s) - district _ Site structure - _ object Number of Resources within Property (Do not include previously listed resources in the count.) Contributing Noncontributing 1 buildings sites structures _objects 1 Total Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register 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 Current Functions (Enter categories from instructions) RECREATION AND CULTURE/Museum 7. Description Architectural Classification (Enter categories from instructions) GREEK REVIVAL Materials (Enter categories from instructions) foundation STONE/granite and fieldstone wallsWOOD/clapboard roof ASPHALT SHINGLES other BRICK (chimney) Narrative Description (Describe the historic and current condition of the property on one or more continuation sheets.) (See continuation sheet) (PS.Fomm 10-900- United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number - 7 Page _1 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Palmer School Boxford (Essex County) Massachusetts 7.

DESCRIPTION The Palmer School, Boxford, is located in the southeast corner of a parcel which comprises a 5.6-acre lot at the intersection of Main Street and Middleton Road. To the north of the nominated property is a large, modern brick school with parking lots, while beyond the school on the same parcel is the town hall, which fronts Middleton Road; both the modern building and the town hall are excluded from the boundaries of the present nomination. On the west side of the Palmer School is a paved driveway and a grove of trees extending to Middleton Road. The Boxford Village Historic District (NR 1973), a residential and institutional area whose resources date to the earliest periods of the community's settlement, lies a short distance to the north and west of the nominated property. The building is a timber frame one story structure, rectangular in plan with a gable roof.

Extending across the north facade is a vestibule with a hip roof. The foundation on the east, west and south sides of the school is granite, and fieldstone under the vestibule. The siding is wood clapboards and the windows are wood double hung sash with six over six or eight over eight lights. There are also three fixed rectangular wood sash. A brick chimney is built into the north gable end. There are two doorways, one on the south and one on the north end of the building. Surviving architectural ornamentation consists of the Greek Revival style corner pilasters and an entablature. The entablature features a cornice, architrave and frieze, the latter two delineated by a thin strip of molding applied under the cornice. On the north gable end there is a continuation of the cornice in the form of returns.

There are also corner pilasters and a cornice on the vestibule with proportionally smaller moldings. Although there has been some clapboard replacement, most of the siding is original with feather-edge lap joints. The building has undergone several historic alterations. The north end of the building is the original front of the school. At an unknown date, but while still in use as a school, the vestibule was added with two separate entrances. The original chimney was located on the rear (south) end of the school. According to school records, the eight over eight sash were added in 1928 to provide more light through the two sides of the building. For an unknown reason, three sets of the new sash were added on the present west side of the school but only two on the east side.

(continued) NPS Form 10-900-a (8-86) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet 2 Section number - Page - OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Palmer School Boxford (Essex County) Massachusetts When the building was moved to this site in 1931 it was oriented to face north away from Main Street but toward the rear of the new school on Middleton Road. This orientation behind the new school was probably due to its intended use as a community house for the children of the town. The existing chimney probably dates from the 1931 relocation of the building. It is likely that there was damage to the roof truss at that time for the two slopes are at different pitches, a fact partially obscured by the chimney where it cuts into the peak of the roof.

Alterations Sometime within the last fifty years major renovations occurred to the interior. While the original horizontal wainscot and window casings of the interior survive, all of the plaster was removed, including on the ceiling where acoustical tiles were installed. The original entrance vestibule was converted into a bathroom and kitchen, resulting in the removal of all historic fabric in those areas, including one of the original doorways. The other door, now closed off, is a modern replacement, as are the two small fixed sash. Also removed were the two six over six double hung sash on the two sides (east and west) of the vestibule. Both openings were covered with clapboards.

The date of the entrance in the south gable end which now provides the only access to the building is not known, but probably occurred when the vestibule on the north side was remodeled for utility spaces within the past twenty years. Current plans to restore the school call for the elimination of the eight over eight sash on the two side elevations, adding missing six over six sash on the east side, and maintaining the existing entrance to the school on the south end of the building.A handicapped access ramp is planed for the north end of the building which was the original front. Archaeological Description While no prehistoric sites are currently recorded on the nominated property or in the general area, it is possible that sites are present. The physical characteristics of the property indicate locational criteria which are favorable for many types of prehistoric sites.

Level to moderate (continued) NPS Form 10-900-a (8-86) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number - Page - OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Palmer School Boxford (Essex County) Massachusetts slope, good drainage and the parcel's close proximity to Fish Brook indicate a high potential for locating prehistoric resources in this area. Given the above information, the degree of historic land use on the property and its size (less than one acre), a moderate potential exists for the survival of prehistoric resources. A low potential exists for the recovery of significant historic archaeological resources on the property.

While the area may have been used for agricultural purposes prior to the location of the school at this site, no specific types of historic period land use have been identified for this locale. This information and the fact that the school was moved to this site from its original location in 1931 indicates a low potential for locating significant historic archaeological resources, especially those related to the school. (end) Palmer School Name of Property 8. Statement of Significance

Statement of significance

Applicable National Register Criteria (Mark "x" in one or more boxes for the criteria qualifying the property for National Register listing.) XA Property is associated with events that have mad sianificant contribution to the broad patterns o' our history. _B Property is associated with the lives of persons significant in our past. XC Property embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction or represents the work of a master, or possesses high artistic values, or represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components lack individual distinction. _D Property has yielded, or is likely to yield information important in prehistory or history. Criteria Considerations (Mark"x" in all the boxes that apply.) Property is: _A owned by religious institution or used for religious purposes. XB removed from its original location.

_C a birthplace or grave. _ D a cemetery. _ E a reconstructed building, object, or structure. _F a commemorative property. _ G less than 50 years of age or achieved significance within the past 50 years. Narrative Statement of Significance (Explain the significance of the property on one or more continuation sheets.) Essex,MA County and State Areas of Significancs Enter categories from instructions ARCHITECTURE SOCIAL HISTORY. EDUCATION Period of Significance 1845-1947 Significant Dates 1845, 1931 Significant Person (Complete if Criterion B is marked above) Cultural Affiliation Architect/Builder Unknown 9.

The rest of the file

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

Major Bibliographical References (Cite the books, articles, and other sources used in preparing this form on one or more continuation sheets.) Previous documentation on file (NPS): Primary location of additional data: _ preliminary determination of individual listing (36 X State Historic Preservation Office CFR 67) has been requested - Other State agency - previously listed in the National Register - Federal agency _ previously determined eligible by the National Local government Library, Town Hall Register _ University _ designated a National Historic Landmark Other _ recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey Name of repository: Massachusetts Historical Commission - recorded by Historic American Engineering Record # MpsFom 10-900-= United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number - 8 Page - 1 OMB Approval No.

1024-0018 Palmer School Boxford (Essex County) Massachusetts 8. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE The Palmer School, also known as the District 2 School and the Little Red Schoolhouse, is the last surviving 19th century school building in the Town of Boxford, a rural community in Essex County, Massachusetts. The building is significant historically as a demonstration of the town's response to population increases in the mid 19t century and reflects the need for readily available public education throughout the community; architecturally, the property is significant as the only remaining example of this building type in Boxford. The Palmer School retains integrity of design, materials, feeling, and association, and fulfills National Register Criteria A and C on the local level. The building was moved to its present location in 1931; it therefore also fulfills Criterion Consideration B.

The Town of Boxford, incorporated in 1685, has historically always been a rural community whose development relied primarily upon agriculture and small manufacturing enterprises. A pattern of dispersed agricultural settlement emerged in the early years of the town's history, and persisted through the 18"' century. The town had its first school teacher in 1701, and was divided into several school districts by 1739, at which time several schoolhouses were apparently constructed; others are known to have been built at the end of the 18h century as well, but in all cases, there is no record of their appearance, and none survive.

By the early 19"h century, two small crossroad villages had become well-established in Boxford, each with its own meetinghouse, and settlement focused in the First Parish (along Main Street and Middleton Road) at the community's geographic center, and the West Parish (Main and Washington Streets). Boxford's population increased gradually, from 800 in 1765 to 930 in 1830. All of the original 18th century buildings used as schools were replaced in the second quarter of the nineteenth century, during the town's most significant period of growth. The Palmer School, in District Two, was built in 1845 in the Greek Revival style. Its original location was on the southern side of Main Street (about one-quarter mile west of its present site) in the village center, near the nucleus of the town's earliest settlement.

By 1854, the railroad had arrived in Boxford, with the Boston and Maine Railroad stopping three times daily in East Boxford. With the railroad came increased manufacturing and small- scale industrial concerns, as well as residential and commercial development. Shoes were (continued) NPS Form 10-900-a (8-86) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number - Page. OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Palmer School Boxford (Essex County) Massachusetts produced in relatively small quantities during the 1850s and into the early years of the Civil War, but the industry failed by the war's end and agriculture remained the community's primary economic activity. The population of Boxford decreased after the Civil War, falling from 847 in 1870 to only 581 by 1925, fewer than had lived in the town in the mid 18"* century.

With a falling population generally, there was no significant increase in the numbers of students townwide and therefore no impetus to replace the older facilities as there had been in the 18th century; the District Two School, therefore, remained in service until the early twentieth century. In 1914 it was named in honor of Deacon Julius A. Palmer, a prominent Boston jeweler and politician who first summered and later retired in Boxford. In 1928, the first change was made to the building, when three of the seven original windows of the east facade were moved to the west side to made the school more "cheerful and wholesome" (according to a 1928 school report). After decades of decline, Boxford saw new growth in the middle years of the 20" century as it became a popular rural haven for prosperous city dwellers.

New population at last meant new schools, and with the 1931 construction of the two-room Aaron Wood School near the intersection of Main Street and Middleton Road, to serve the elementary school children of Boxford Center, the Palmer School became obsolete. It was sold at public auction to Chester Killam, the town moderator, who sold it again a few months later to Edna Rich Morse. Mrs. Morse was a summer resident from New York whose vacation retreat was across the road from the school's original location. At her expense, the building was relocated to a three-acre parcel purchased by Mrs. Morse and donated to the town in 1930 as a public playground, in memory of her husband Louis Kennedy Morse. Moved by oxen, the Palmer School was relocated a quarter mile down the road to its present site behind the new Wood School; Mrs.

Morse intended the school to be used by Boxford children as a community house. On its new site, the Palmer School was subsequently used for a variety of purposes, including temporary classrooms in the 1950s, a kindergarten, an arts and crafts classroom, and offices for town employees. The Wood School was converted for town offices when the Cole School was built in 1956. The Cole School, which is located between the town hall and the Palmer School, was enlarged in 1989 and 1997. In its traditional form, with a single-story, gable-front orientation, simple detailing, and one- room plan, the building was not unlike others of its period constructed in the region.

The apparent original single entry was changed later in the 19t century to a vestibule with paired (continued) ap5, erm 10-900-1 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number - 8 Page - 3 OMB ApprovalNo. 1024-0018 Palmer School Boxford (Essex County) Massachusetts entrances for boys and girls, again typical of the building type. The appearance of other 19' century district schools in Boxford is at present unknown. In addition, no former district schools have been identified thus far in altered, residential use, although such alteration, with the conversion of district schools whose public use was over, was a common practice elsewhere and could be expected in Boxford as well.

Despite several changes over the past century, including the mid-20" century relocation of the entry from the northern to southern side, the building retains the essential characteristics of its style and type. Currently the Palmer School is not in use, but plans are to restore it as an historic one-room schoolhouse. Due to interior remodeling, current plans are to maintain the existing entrance on the historic rear of the building rather than restore the original facade on the north end of the building. Archaeological Significance Since patterns of prehistoric settlement and subsistence in the Boxford area are poorly understood, any surviving sites could be significant. Prehistoric sites in this area can also help to better understand Native American settlement in the Ipswich River drainage and the role/importance of sites along a tributary of that drainage.

Native American settlement has been documented within the Ipswich River Basin from the Paleo Indian through Contact Periods. Sites in this area can help document the cultural and environmental changes that occurred in this area over that 10,000 year history. (end) : Mes F rm 10-900- United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number - 9 Page - 1 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Palmer School Boxford (Essex County) Massachusetts 9. MAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES Boxford Town Reports, 1926, 1928, 1930, 1931. Haynes, Winthrop P.., Collection, Box 40, Boxford Historic Document Center. Hurd, Hamilton, ed., History of Essex County, Mass., with Biographical Sketches, Vol. II, Philadelphia, 1888. Perley, Barbara, Town of Boxford, Mass., A Fragment of History, Rowley Printing, Rowley, Mass., 1985.

Perley, Sidney, History of Boxford, Essex County, Mass., published by the author, 1880. (end) Palmer School Name of Property Essex, Massachusetts County and State 10. Geographical Data Acreage of Property less than one acre UTM References See continuation sheet. (Place additional UTM references on a continuation sheet) 1 19. 335860 4724660 Zone Easting Northing Zone Easting Northing 3. Zone Easting 4. Zone Easting _See continuation sheet Northing Northing Verbal Boundary Description (Describe the boundaries of the property on a continuation sheet.) Boundary Justification (Explain why the boundaries were selected on a continuation sheet.) 11.

Form Prepared By name/title_Roger Reed, Preservation Consultant, with Betsy Friedberg, MHC, National Register Director organization Massachusetts Historical Commission street & number_220 Morrissey Boulevard .date September 1997 telephone 617-727-8470 city or town_ Boston state_MA _zip code_02125 Additional Documentation Submit the following items with the completed form: Continuation Sheets Maps A USGS map (7.5 or 15 minute series) indicating the property's location. A sketch map for historic districts and properties having large acreage or numerous resources. Photographs Representative black and white photographs of the property.

Additional items (Check with the SHPO or FPO for any additional items) Property Owner (Complete this item at the request of the SHPO or FPO.) name Town of Boxford street & number Boxford Town Hall, 28 Middleton Road telephone 617-887-8181 city or town _ state_MA Zip code 01921 Paperwork Reduction Act Statement: This information is being collected for applications to the National Register of Historic Places to nominate properties for listing or determine eligibility for listing, to list properties, and to amend existing listings. Response to this request is required to obtain a benefit in accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended (16 U.S.C.

470 et seq.) Estimated Burden Statement: Public reporting burden for this form is estimated to average 18.1 hours per response including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining data, and completing and reviewing the form. Direct comments regarding this burden estimate or any aspect of this form to the Chief, Administrative Services Division, National Park Service, P.0. Box 37127, Washington, DC 20013-7127; and the Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reductions Project (1024-0018), Washington, DC 20503. F a United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number - 10 Page OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Palmer School Boxford (Essex County) Massachusetts 10.

GEOGRAPHICAL DATA Verbal Boundary Deseription The boundary of the nominated property begins at the intersection of the east property line where it joins Main Street, then follows the north side of Main Street approximately 85 feet to the paved driveway, then follows the east side of the paved driveway approximately 150 feet to the curb of the paved parking lot, then turns east following the curb of the parking lot approximately 85 feet to the east property line, then turns south to follow the east property line approximately 137 feet to the point of beginning. Boundary Justification The boundary consists of a small portion of town property which contains the historic Palmer School. The nominated area is defined by the driveway on the west, the parking lot on the north, Main Street on the south, and the east property line.

(end) Bbogeddct pli eebolpper llind :P: 11-06-1995 03:53PM FROM BOXFORD TOUN HALL TO 3528547 F.02 -li .1 m-: STR Lot -SOLD outor ORIGINAL LicuS ROAD 24040 " Lot B-1 MIDDLETON Nº4'S[30°G LOT "A" 105,295.55qF* Whtnrep I Anno Hoynee 1 Arthur Morae Lor'B" Town of Baxfora 143,0308 5q.Ft. LOT *F 3Xa82S/t tta French 78.00 18,0363SqFt 167.00 32343902 Archer N. Fremch -30735700 NESUITOE 28.92 Etto french LOT "C" --Notr F. Eaton S LOT 2683 S0556W "Lot B-2" W5996301 Russell. clarence ITTEA REGISTP1 OF DEROL S0. DST, SALEA, AASS. miw Ops.6 1933 -Noto: Total area of :PLAN OF LAND. IN BOXFORD MASS. ''tllQi scolei-1-60° Feb.19,1953 Mniso df buad Dano F. Perkino i Sona, inc. Civll Engineers 'i Surveyors Reading, Moss.

A,B; 'D:LF - 6.12 Aeraa PIOTOGRAPH LOCATONS STREFT ROAD N639 24a60 Tmm dl hmntan " Lot B-1 MIDDLETON N94°5530°5= 267.04 LOT "A" 105,295.35qF* Watrrap 1 Aone Hoynee 1 Arthur Morae LOT *F° 31825rt ta French outor Lotc" -SOLD ORIGINAL Licus 78.00 18,036.3Sq.Ft Archer N. French 167.00 32343907 567-3610° LOT Etto French i§Motrascare F. Eaton LOT'B° Town o1 Baxfora 143,0308 5q.Ft. "Lot B-2" DC LOT "D- 4s07300w1 Russell. ETILI REGISTPI O DLROR, S0. BST. SALLA, MSS. hid Opes.6 153 d '. PLAN OF LAND. IN BOXFORD MasS. Feh19,1953 Dono F. Perkina i Sono, inc. Civll Engincers 'i Suryeyors Reading, Mass. Noto: Total area of Lots A: B; "D:"L"F.

6.12 Aeres UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES EVALUATION/RETURN SHEET REQUESTED ACTION: NOMINATION PROPERTY Palmer School NAME: MULTIPLE NAME : STATE & COUNTY: MASSACHUSETTS, Essex DATE RECEIVED: DATE OF 16TH DAY: DATE OF WEEKLY LIST: 1/23/98 2/18/98 DATE OF PENDING LIST: 2/02/98 DATE OF 45TH DAY: 3/09/98 REFERENCE NUMBER: 98000122 NOMINATOR: STATE REASONS FOR REVIEW: APPEAL: N DATA PROBLEM: N LANDSCAPE: N LESS THAN 50 YEARS: OTHER : N PDIL: N PERIOD: N PROGRAM UNAPPROVED: REQUEST: N SAMPLE: N SLR DRAFT: N NATIONAL: N N N COMMENT WAIVER: N ACCEPT RETURN REJECT 2/20/980ATE ABSTRACT/ SUMMARY COMMENTS : Entered in the lational Register RECOM. /CRITERIA REVIEWER TELEPHONE DISCIPLINE DATE DOCUMENTATION see attached comments Y/N see attached SLR Y/N PALMER SCHOOL BOXFORO (ESSEX), MA Oct 1997 AIMEE TAßERNER ploto ueg.

at MHC soutu facade and door, lookine PItOro 1 PALMER SCHOOL BOXFORD (ESSEX) UA Ort. 1997 AIMEE TABERNER photo meg. at MHC Nortu facade aud addition facing s PItOrO 2 PALMER SCHOOL BOXFORD (ESSEX), MA Oct. 1997 AIMEE TABERNER ploto negs. at MHC went facade aud parking lot facing S PItOTo 3 PALMER SCItOOL BOXFORO (ESSEX), uA AIMEE TABERNER ploto Oct 1997 neg. at MHHC souta facade, lookiny NE PHOTO 4 PALMER SCIOOL BOXFORD (ESSEX) uA Oct. 1997 AIMEE TABERNER plOto school with Town Hall (1i9, Facig N PHOrO 5 PALMER SCHDOL BOXFORD (ESSEX) , MA 00+ T0S NNNNN + IZ View from main looking Northeas 6 PALMER SCItOOL BOXFORD (EsSeX), MA Z0- IZ Schoolhoure facadl, shom school on left in back Vien foom main Stree PItOTO 7 District 2 or Palmer School 33 Main ST.

Boxford, Massachusetts Photographer, Brenda Stickney Date: Januany15, 1996 Negative in porsession of BrendaSticknel Photo # 8 of 24 North west view The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Massachusetts Historical Commission January 5, 198 Ms. Carol Shull Keeper National Register of Historic Places Department of the Interior National Park Service Mail Stop 2280, Suite 400 1849 C Street, NW Washington, D. C. 20240 Dear Ms. Shull, Enclosed please find the following nomination form: Palmer School, 33 Main Street, Boxford (Essex Co.), MA The nomination has been voted eligible by the State Review Board and has been signed by the State Historic Preservation Officer. The owners of the property were notified of pending State Review Board consideration 30 to 45 days before the meeting and were afforded the opportunity to comment.

Sincerely, Betry Freedkeg Betsy Friedberg National Register Director Massachusetts Historical Commission enclosure CC: Brenda Stickney, 51 Washington Street, Boxford Susan Peterson, Chair, Boxford Historical Commission Roger Reed, Preservation Consultant Gerald R. Johnson, Chair, Boxford Board of Selectmen 220 Morrissey Boulevard, Boston, Massachusetts 02125 - (617) 727-8470 Fax: (617) 727-5128 TDD: 1-800-392-6090 Website: www.magnet.state.ma.us/sec/mhc