{"nrhp_refnum":"73000299","name":"Mills-Stebbins Villa","other_names":["See Also:Ames Hill/Crescent Hill District"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"3 Crescent Hill","address_restricted":false,"city":"Springfield","county":"Hampden County","state":"MA","lat":42.09105149800007,"lon":-72.57765449799996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-10-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A brick Italian Villa style house at 3 Crescent Hill in Springfield, Hampden County, Massachusetts, built in 1849-1851 from designs by Henry A. Sykes of Suffield, Connecticut, with service and nursery wings added around 1900.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it the oldest and finest example of the Italian Villa style in Springfield, quoting Henry Russell Hitchcock's description of it as one of the finest nineteenth century houses in America. It is considered the best work of architect Henry A. Sykes. Its first owner, John Mills, and later owner John B. Stebbins were prominent local figures, and the site lies on the ridge between the South End and the affluent Maple Street Hill.","narrative":"Mills-Stebbins Villa is a brick house at 3 Crescent Hill in Springfield, Massachusetts, built between 1849 and 1851 to designs by Henry A. Sykes of Suffield, Connecticut. Its asymmetrical plan grows from a shallow-gabled, two-story central block and includes a tall tower modelled on a fifteenth century Italian campanile, balconies, a brick bow and an oriel window. Service and nursery wings were added around 1900. The nomination describes it as the oldest and finest Italian Villa style building in Springfield and quotes Henry Russell Hitchcock calling it one of the finest nineteenth century houses in America. It is regarded as Sykes's best work. John Mills, an attorney and State Treasurer, was the first owner; banker and developer John B. Stebbins acquired it in 1861, and his family kept it until 1962. After a period of vacancy and vandalism, restoration of the house and grounds began. The site sits on the ridge between the South End and Maple Street Hill.","period_of_significance":"19th Century (specific dates 1849-51, c. 1900, c. 1920)","architect_builder":"Henry A. Sykes of Suffield, Connecticut","architectural_style":"Italian Villa","criteria":[],"status_note":"Private residence in fair, altered condition; the interior is in poor but original condition and the owners have undertaken restoration after years of vacancy and vandalism.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:54.168137-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/7/7953/63795307/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/73000299.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73000299/a5e59bede9-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73000299/a5e59bede9-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Morton Hauler","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mills-Stebbins_House_sp.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Morton Hauler</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mills-Stebbins_House_sp.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795307","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mills-Stebbins_Villa","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6859942"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/hampden-county/mills-stebbins-villa-73000299/"}