{"nrhp_refnum":"72000123","name":"Holyoke-French House","other_names":["See also:Boxford Village Historic District"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Elm St. and Topsfield Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Boxford","county":"Essex County","state":"MA","lat":42.66136278700003,"lon":-70.99685464399994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1972-04-26","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Religion","Performing Arts"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A 2½-story late Colonial gambrel-roofed house at Elm Street and Topsfield Road in Boxford Center, Boxford, Massachusetts, built in 1760 by Samuel Holyoke, a Boston merchant, with a Gothic Revival ell added around 1890.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it probably the least altered early house in Boxford and architecturally important for its stylistic purity. Its historical significance comes from its connection with the esteemed Holyoke family, including composer and publisher Samuel Holyoke. It is also described as one of the most important structures in the Boxford Village Historic District.","narrative":"Built in 1760 on a broad, tree-lined street in Boxford Center, this clapboard house is a symmetrical, five-bay, 2½-story late Colonial building with a gambrel roof, paired chimneys and pedimented doorways with fluted pilasters. Samuel Holyoke, a Boston merchant, had it constructed after tearing down an earlier house of 1701/2 built for Boxford's first minister, Reverend Thomas Symmes. A Gothic Revival ell was added around 1890, but otherwise the house remains much as built, probably the least altered early house in town. The Holyoke family, which included the composer and publisher Samuel Holyoke, owned it until 1866, when Elvin French, a musician, bought it. Miss Gertrude French, the last resident, died in 1940 and left it to the Boxford Historical Society. The house was listed for its stylistic purity and its link to the Holyoke family. It now serves as a museum open for educational tours, with a cobbler shop and barn on the grounds.","period_of_significance":"18th Century (1760)","architect_builder":"Samuel Holyoke, a Boston merchant, had the house built; no architect named","architectural_style":"Late Colonial (main house); Gothic Revival (ell)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Owned by the Boxford Historical Society, in good condition, occupied, and open for educational tours as a museum; restoration was in progress in December 1971.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:54.270392-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/50/7949/63794950/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/72000123.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72000123/473292c08f-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72000123/473292c08f-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Fletcher6","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Holyoke_French_House.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Fletcher6</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:Holyoke_French_House.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"73000279","name":"Boxford Village Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/massachusetts/boxford-village-historic-district-73000279/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63794950","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holyoke%E2%80%93French_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16995727"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/essex-county/holyoke-french-house-72000123/"}