{"nrhp_refnum":"02000695","name":"Fernside-Vacation House for Working Girls","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"162 Mountain Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Princeton","county":"Worcester County","state":"MA","lat":42.46856136500003,"lon":-71.88398363299996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-06-27","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Entertainment/Recreation","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-building complex on a 6.73-acre hillside site on Mountain Road in Princeton, Massachusetts, centered on a Federal-style clapboard house built in 1835 with later wings, plus a playhouse theatre (converted barn) and a garage.","why_significant":"It was a rural summer vacation house for working girls from about 1890 until it closed in 1989, and the nomination suggests it may have been among the earliest such houses in the United States. It is also significant for its Federal and Classical architecture and its role in social history and recreation, sustained by the Allen family and other dedicated volunteers.","narrative":"Fernside is a hillside property on Mountain Road in Princeton, Massachusetts, built around a two-story Federal-style house of 1835. Wings were added in the mid-to-late 19th century, along with jig-saw-cut porches, and the house keeps its Classical doorframes, reeded trim and fireplace surrounds. A former barn converted to a playhouse theatre and a metal-clad garage complete the complex, which sits on about six and three-quarter acres with views toward Wachusett Mountain and the eastern horizon. The house began taking summer boarders in 1870, and in 1890 a Working Girls' Club opened it as a vacation inn. Under the leadership of Miss Allen, her family members and long-serving figures such as Dr. Alice Bassett, it offered city working women a rural retreat until 1989. The nomination suggests it may have been one of the earliest summer houses of its kind in the country. Its architecture, recreational use and social history support its listing. Later owners restored it and now operate it as an inn.","period_of_significance":"1835-1952","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Early Republic/Federal","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Restored and rehabilitated by current owners; the interior has been adapted for use as a bed-and-breakfast inn. The vacation house closed in 1989.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:04.292356-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/10/7974/63797410/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/02000695.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000695/e35de04dfc-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000695/e35de04dfc-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Izzysanime","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fernside-Vacation_House_for_Working_Girls.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Izzysanime</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fernside-Vacation_House_for_Working_Girls.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63797410","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fernside-Vacation_House_for_Working_Girls","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5445136"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/worcester-county/fernside-vacation-house-for-working-girls-02000695/"}