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Photograph of Captain Robert Bennet Forbes House
Photograph by Jameslwoodward, CC BY-SA 3.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Capt. Robert B. Forbes House

A National Historic Landmark. Built in 1833 (Greek Revival architecture). Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966. 17 historic topographic surveys show this location, the earliest from 1893.

From the record

“The Captain Robert Bennet Forbes House, also known as the R. Forbes House and Forbes House Museum, is a house museum located at 215 Adams Street, Milton, Massachusetts.”

Wikipedia article Captain Robert Bennet Forbes House, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 342 National Register listings published here for Norfolk County · listed in 1966 · category: Building · built in 1833, Greek Revival architecture, by Isaiah Rogers · a National Historic Landmark.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

  • National Historic Landmark. The highest federal designation, held by about 2,600 places in the country against roughly 100,000 Register listings.
  • What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 1 building as contributing to the listing.
  • Still standing. The Park Service records this property as extant.
  • Listed as. Forbes, Capt. Robert B., House - the National Register files a house under its owner's surname.
  • Address. 215 Adams St., Milton, 02186
  • When was it listed? 1966-11-13
  • Category. building
  • Town. Milton town
  • When was it built? 1833
  • Architectural style. Greek Revival architecture
  • Architect. Isaiah Rogers
  • National Register reference number. 66000651 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

The ground it stands on

31,195 words

The chapter on Milton Town in History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men, published 1884 names Milton. This is what it says, exactly as the scans read.

For six years after the arrival in Massachusetts Bay of Governor Winthrop, with the charter, in 1630, and the great accompanying emigration connected with this movement, all the territory comprised within the present borders of Milton remained a part of the undivided lands of the colony, and during this period three gentlemen, who were doubtless members or stockholders of the company before they left England, - lIsrael Stoughton, John Glover, and William Hutchinson, - selected a part of the Jand dividends to which they were entitled within our limits. probably attracted by certain natural advantages which belonged to the locality, - the water-falls in the river, the convenience for ship-building offered by the tidewaters, an abundant supply of ship-timber, and, above Stoughton and Glover were prominent men in the Dorchester

Passage source: History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men, published 1884.

Mr. Stoughton selected one hundred and sixty acres of land connected with the lower falls, including nearly the whole of Milton Hill, and the front on the river to the bend, where the ship-yard of Mr. Briggs was located. Nearly all this property continued in him and his heirs for more than twenty

Passage source: History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men, published 1884.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Milton Town - 31,195 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.

Fires near this property

169 since 2015

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 169 fires within 5 miles of Capt. Robert B. Forbes House between 2015 and 2020, burning about 108 acres in total. None started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Recreation and ceremony113
Smoking31
Missing data/not specified/undetermined20
Debris and open burning3
Equipment and vehicle use2

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
7 September 2015Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlBRAINTREE
7 September 2015Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlBRAINTREE
5 September 2016Smokingunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlQUINCY
28 September 2015Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlBRAINTREE
23 September 2020Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
23 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
17 September 2016Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlDEDHAM
14 September 2016Smokingunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlQUINCY

Every fire recorded in Norfolk County

Specimens collected near this property

12 of 12,475 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. Museums hold 12,475 specimens collected within 10 miles of Capt. Robert B. Forbes House between 1810 and 1975: 5,140 Plantae, 3,659 Fungi, 3,120 Animalia, 256 Chromista, 204 Protozoa, 63 Unrecorded, 33 Bacteria. 12 distinct Species records are shown. Collected by (MARSDEN, H W), ?, ? ex Herb. W.G. Farlow and others. Each is a physical object with a catalogue number, and each entry opens the museum's record. This is what was collected and kept, not a survey of what lives here - nothing can be concluded from a species being absent.

Image SpeciesYear Collected by Where, as recorded
Specimen of Lysimachia × producta (A.Gray) FernaldLysimachia × producta (A.Gray) Fernald1900A. P. Chute
A photograph of the species Thalictrum L., not of this specimenThalictrum L.1810Boott, J.W.Near Boston.
A photograph of the species Anemone L., not of this specimenAnemone L.1815Boott, J.Andover Turnpike, 7 miles from Boston.
A photograph of the species Corydalis Vent., not of this specimenCorydalis Vent.1815Boott, F.M.B.Worcester turnpike, 6 miles from Boston.
A photograph of the species Corylus L., not of this specimenCorylus L.1815not recordedCambridge Port, 2 miles from Boston.
Ericaceae1815BoottBoston, U.S.A.
A photograph of the species Hepatica Mill., not of this specimenHepatica Mill.1815Boott, F.M.B.Sweet Auburn.
A photograph of the species Limonium vulgare, not of this specimenLimonium vulgare Mill.1815not recordedOn Cragies Road [=near Cragies Bridge], 1 1/2 miles from Boston.
A photograph of the species Mollugo verticillata, not of this specimenMollugo verticillata L.1815Boott, F.M.B.Boston.
A photograph of the species Nuphar Sm., not of this specimenNuphar Sm.1815Boott, J.W.Worcester Turnpike 6 miles from Boston.
A photograph of the species Persicaria Mill., not of this specimenPersicaria (L.) Mill.1815Boott, J.W.Craigie's Road, 2 miles from Boston.
A photograph of the species Populus L., not of this specimenPopulus L.1815not recordedCambridgeport, 1 mile from Boston.

All 12,475 specimens within 10 miles, at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Mines and quarries near this property

4 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 4 workings within 5 miles of Capt. Robert B. Forbes House: 2 producers, 1 unknown, 1 past producer. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Granite, Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Braintree PlantSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Old Colony Crushed StoneGranitePast ProducerGranite
Old Colony QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
West Roxbury Crushed Stone OperatioStone, Crushed/BrokenUnknown

Every working recorded in Norfolk County

Storms near this property

21 since 1996

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Milton, the town this property stands in, in 21 storm reports between 1996 and 2025: 9 thunderstorm wind, 5 lightning, 4 heavy rain, 1 hail. The reports record 3 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
June 2010LightningMilton3 hurtLightning struck a house on Augusta Road, causing a fire that engulfed the entire third floor of the house. No one was home at the time of the fire. Three firefighters were hospitalized for heat exhaustion but were released less than 24 hours later.
July 2008LightningMilton$250,000A house on Highland Street in Quincy was struck by lightning and caught fire.
July 2002LightningMilton$90,000no account filed
July 2002Thunderstorm WindMilton$25,000no account filed
May 2006Thunderstorm WindMilton$15,000no account filed
August 1998LightningMilton$3,000no account filed
August 2022Thunderstorm WindMilton$800In Milton, the public reported a tree and wires down. Report relayed via amateur radio.
June 2020Thunderstorm WindMilton$800In Milton, a tree and wires were down on Randolph Avenue (Route 28).
July 2025Flash FloodMilton-In Milton, Lincoln St was flooded and impassable.
September 2017FloodMilton-At 930 AM EST in Milton, Lincoln Street at Brook Road was closed due to flooding.
June 2010Thunderstorm WindMilton-An anemometer at Blue Hill Observatory and Science Center recorded a wind gust of 58 mph.
May 2009HailMilton-Penny size hail fell at Blue Hill Observatory and Science Center.
May 2006Thunderstorm WindMilton-Blue Hill Observatory
April 2000Thunderstorm WindMilton-no account filed
May 2000LightningMilton-no account filed
June 2000Heavy RainMilton-no account filed
July 2000Thunderstorm WindMilton-no account filed
February 1999Heavy RainMilton-no account filed
June 1998Heavy RainMilton-no account filed
October 1998Heavy RainMilton-no account filed
May 1996Thunderstorm WindMilton-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Norfolk County

Maps showing this location

17 surveys

United States Geological Survey topographic sheets whose coverage includes this point. Matched by taking the coordinate the National Park Service records for this property, then testing that coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet.

Listed places nearby

6 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Photograph PropertyDistance Listed
Dr. Amos Holbrook Houseunder 500 feet1975
Milton Hill Historic District0.1 miles1995
Gov. Thomas Hutchinson's Ha-ha0.2 miles1975
Milton Cemetery0.3 miles2004
Belcher-Rowe House0.9 miles1982
Milton Centre Historic District1.0 miles1988

Sources for this property

National Archives recordThe nomination case file for reference 66000651 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia articleCommunity-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Norfolk CountyAll 342 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

  • Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
  • Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
  • How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
  • Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
  • Specimens. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), https://www.gbif.org/. Only records licensed CC0 or CC BY are used. Records licensed CC BY-NC are excluded because this site carries advertising. Images are checked individually and any whose licence is non-commercial, no-derivatives or unreadable is refused.
  • Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
  • Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.