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Lewis House, photograph from the federal nomination
Lewis House, photograph from the federal nomination

Photographs from the nomination case file, National Park Service records.

Lewis House

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. A historic map-sheet match is not published yet. The record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary.

From the record

“Eff'orts to create a public opinion in favor of such an institution had been made by several citizens since 1S50. Winn off'ered to give % 300 to found a library, provided the town would raise as much more.”

History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : Containing Carefully Prepared Histories of Every City and Town in the County (1880). Machine-read text.

one of 1100 National Register listings in Middlesex County · listed in 1984 · category: Building · one of 3 National Historic Landmarks in Middlesex County.

Sources: the county history on the Internet Archive · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

  • What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 1 building as contributing to the listing.
  • Address. 276 Woburn St., Reading, 01801
  • When was it listed? 1984-07-19
  • Category. building
  • Also known as. Reading MRA
  • Township. Woburn city
  • National Register reference number. 84002741 - 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

48,923 words

The chapter on Woburn City in History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : Containing Carefully Prepared Histories of Every City and Town in the County, published 1880 names Reading. This is what it says, exactly as the scans read.

Danvcrs. militia from, killed at Menotomy, i. 126 Park day of 1780. account of, ii. 176; noticed in Reading, Davies, Rev. Nathan, minister in Dracut, i. 413. Davis, Captain, killed at Concord, i. 123. Dawes, William, rides from Boston for alann, i. 114. Dave, Samuel, first printer at Cambridge, i. 70; Stephe " printer at Cambridge, i.318; Matthew, second printer i

Passage source: History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : Containing Carefully Prepared Histories of Every City and Town in the County, published 1880.

Lands, first allotment of, i. 20; in Hopkinton, leases of, i. 485; in Kramingham, early grants of, i. 436; early granted in Billerica. i. 255 ; granted to Crown at Ashland, i. 227; first allotted iu Cambridge, i. 310; in Dracut, town action laying out, i 409; early grants of, in Maiden, ii. 114; granted" to Maiden in Woicester County, ii. 119 ; early grants of, at Maynard, li 154; first purchase of, for Lowell factories, ii. 59; of Reading, first granted to Lynn, ii. 270; in Sudbury, early described, ii. 357; and ways, liow disposed in Wayland, ii". 462.

Passage source: History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : Containing Carefully Prepared Histories of Every City and Town in the County, published 1880.

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 Woburn City - 48,923 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.

Fires near this property

47 since 2003

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 47 fires within 5 miles of Lewis House between 2003 and 2020, burning about 22 acres in total. None started naturally. 2 were 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
Missing data/not specified/undetermined14
Debris and open burning13
Recreation and ceremony9
Misuse of fire by a minor3
Arson/incendiarism2
Power generation/transmission/distribution2
Equipment and vehicle use2
Smoking1
Railroad operations and maintenance1

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
23 September 2020Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
4 August 2015Smokingunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlAMESBURY
31 August 2015Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
26 August 2017Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
20 August 2017Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlWINCHESTER
13 August 2020Arson/incendiarism2.5 acresMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlGRINDING ROCK HILL FIRE
23 July 2016Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlSAUGUS
20 July 2016Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlLYNNFIELD

Every fire recorded in Middlesex County

Specimens collected near this property

12 of 1,156 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. Museums hold 1,156 specimens collected within 10 miles of Lewis House between 1898 and 1975: 451 Plantae, 435 Animalia, 233 Fungi, 17 Bacteria, 8 Unrecorded, 7 Protozoa, 5 Chromista. 12 distinct Species records are shown. Collected by ?, A B Seymour, A B. Proper 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 Trientalis borealis Raf.Trientalis borealis Raf.1900A. P. Chute
Aglaospora profusa (Fr.) De Not.1898Collector unspecified
A photograph of the species Cantharellus infundibuliformis, not of this specimenCantharellus infundibuliformis (Scop.) Fr.1898not recordedMelrose.
A photograph of the species Cladonia coccifera, not of this specimenCladonia coccifera (L.) Willd.1898Francis P DanielsCambridge
A photograph of the species Cladonia rangiferina, not of this specimenCladonia rangiferina (L.) Weber1898Francis P DanielsArlington Heights
A photograph of the species Cordyceps capitata, not of this specimenCordyceps capitata (Holmsk.) Link1898Conant, [?] F.Middlesex Fells
A photograph of the species Ctenidium malacodes, not of this specimenCtenidium malacodes Mitt.1898not recorded
A photograph of the species Cucurbitaria elongata, not of this specimenCucurbitaria elongata (Fr.) Grev.1898J. G. Hall
A photograph of the species Aphanochaete repens, not of this specimenAphanochaete repens A.Braun1900F. S. CollinsMiddlesex Fells, Wright's Pond, on Oedogonium, etc.
A photograph of the species Batrachospermum gelatinosum, not of this specimenBatrachospermum gelatinosum (L.) DC.1900F. S. Collinson stones in stream
A photograph of the species Batrachospermum moniliforme, not of this specimenBatrachospermum moniliforme Sirodot1900F. S. Collinson stones in stream
A photograph of the species Betula alleghaniensis, not of this specimenBetula alleghaniensis Britton1900E. F. Williams

All 1,156 specimens within 10 miles, at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Mines and quarries near this property

10 of 22 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 22 workings within 5 miles of Lewis House: 13 past producers, 5 producers, 3 plants, 1 unknown. 8 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Stone, Crushed/Broken, Titanium, Peat. 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
Austin Hastings--Woburn, Ma.IronPlant
Ferro Ceramic Grinding--WakefieldSilicaPlant
Heffron Asphalt CorpTitanium, MetalPast Producer
Mahoney:S Rocky LedgePeatPast ProducerPeat
Rocky Ledge PitClayPast Producer
Dynamet Tech--Burlington, Ma.TitaniumPlant
Heffron Asphalt Co--Wilmington, Ma.TitaniumPast Producer
Marlborough Plant/Polishing PlatesStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
North Wilmington QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
Roma Stone PitStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer

Every working recorded in Middlesex County

Storms near this property

18 since 2001

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Reading, the town this property stands in, in 18 storm reports between 2001 and 2024: 15 thunderstorm wind, 2 hail, 1 flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. 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
August 2005Thunderstorm WindNorth Reading$15,000no account filed
August 2004Thunderstorm WindNorth Reading$15,000no account filed
July 2012Thunderstorm WindNorth Reading$10,000A tree and wires on Route 162 were downed by thunderstorm winds.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindReading$5,000In Reading, there was a tree down on a car in the area of Kingston St.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindNorth Reading$5,000A tree on North Street was downed by thunderstorm winds.
August 2005Thunderstorm WindNorth Reading$5,000no account filed
July 2008Thunderstorm WindReading$3,000Trees and wires on Pearl and Highland Streets were downed by thunderstorm winds.
September 2014Thunderstorm WindReading$2,000A large limb was downed by thunderstorm winds, blocking the intersection of Main Street and Forest Glen.
June 2017Thunderstorm WindNorth Reading$1,000At 118 PM EST, a tree was down across Haverhill Street in North Reading.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindReading$1,000A large branch was downed by thunderstorm winds.
August 2011Thunderstorm WindReading$1,000A one to two foot diameter limb on Ash Street was downed by thunderstorm winds.
June 2010Thunderstorm WindReading$1,000A large tree was downed onto wires by thunderstorm winds.
May 2008Thunderstorm WindReading$1,000Trees and wires on West Street were downed by thunderstorm winds.
September 2020FloodNorth Reading-In North Reading, Marshall Street at Parker Drive was impassable due to flooding.
March 2012HailNorth Reading-no account filed
August 2011HailReading-no account filed
June 2001Thunderstorm WindReading-no account filed
August 2001Thunderstorm WindReading-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Middlesex County

Map coverage status

No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.

From the nomination file

1,445 words on record

When this property was proposed for the National Register, someone wrote the case for it: what the building is, and why it matters. That document is a federal record in the public domain. It is reproduced in full on its own page, word for word and never summarised. The text was read off the scanned case file by machine, so the occasional stray character is the recogniser's and the 1970s typewriter's.

The whole case file for this property - 1,445 words, 9 pages, reproduced complete.

Quoted from the National Register nomination for reference 84002741, 9 pages, held by the National Archives in Record Group 79. See the catalogue record.

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
Coggin, Gilman, House0.2 miles1984
Dewey Place0.3 miles1984
Bancroft, Samuel, House0.5 miles1984
House at 206 West Street0.5 miles1984
Parker, Samuel, House0.6 miles1984
Weston, Jabez, House0.6 miles1984

Sources for this property

National Archives recordThe nomination case file for reference 84002741 in Record Group 79.
Middlesex CountyAll 1100 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.