The Benjamin Beard House is a historic house in Reading, Massachusetts. Built in the early 1850s, it is a well-preserved example of a distinctive local variant of Greek Revival architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.[1]
Benjamin Beard House | |
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| Location | 251 Ash St., Reading, Massachusetts |
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| Coordinates | 42°31′0.4″N 71°6′3.01″W / 42.516778°N 71.1008361°W |
| Built | 1854 |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| MPS | Reading MRA |
| NRHP reference No. | 84002505[1] |
| Added to NRHP | July 19, 1984 |
Description and history
editThe Benjamin Beard House stands south of downtown Reading, at the southwest corner of Ash Street and Avon Street. The house is a 1+1⁄2-story wood-frame structure, with a side-gable roof, single off-center interior chimney, and clapboarded exterior. It is laid out in what was a fairly common local variant, with the long spine of the house parallel to the street, and set on a slightly raised mound. There are pilasters on the corners, and the front entry has a somewhat tall Federal style high entablature, with sidelight windows and plain side molding supporting a corniced entablature. A single-story ell extends to the rear of the main block.[2]
The house was probably built in the early 1850s. Benjamin Beard, its first owner, was the town's first jeweler, opening a store in 1847 after having previously worked for a local clock- and watchmaker. Beard's son William also continued the profession.[2]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
- ^ a b "NRHP nomination for Benjamin Beard House". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 2014-02-19.