{"nrhp_refnum":"73001942","name":"Mechanics Block Historic District","other_names":["Mechanics Block","See Also:Mechanics Block Historic District ("],"category":"district","location":{"address":"107-139 Garden St. and 6-38 Orchard St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lawrence","county":"Essex County","state":"MA","lat":42.70951650000006,"lon":-71.15451451088444,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-04-03","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Commerce","Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A historic district in Lawrence, Essex County, Massachusetts, made up of 34 two-story brick rowhouses on Garden Street (#107-139) and Orchard Street (#6-38), built about 1847 by the Essex Company.","why_significant":"The nomination argues that the rowhouses exemplify the history of Lawrence's working people, housing skilled craftsmen and later laborers who worked in the textile mills. They are described as substantially unaltered, excellent examples of New England factory dwellings. The district also reflects the changing ethnic makeup of the neighborhood, from English, Scottish and native-born workers to Irish and later Italian-American residents.","narrative":"Mechanics Block is a row of 34 two-story brick houses facing Orchard Street and Garden Street in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Built around 1847 by the Essex Company as part of the new industrial city, the houses are three bays wide, with granite lintels, paired entrances with sidelights and transoms, end chimneys and gabled dormers. Few changes in about 125 years have disturbed their unity, mainly late 19th-century bracketed hoods over the doorways and a handful of enlarged dormers, brick bays and added stories. The block originally held 50 rowhouses. In 1853 the company sold it to the Lawrence Machine Company, with a deed reserving the homes for skilled craftsmen. Later owners included the Everett and Washington Mills. Over time the residents shifted from English, Scottish and native-born workers to Irish-Americans and then Italian-Americans. The district is valued as a surviving example of New England factory housing and a record of the city's working families.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Essex Company","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in good condition, altered in minor ways, and occupied; present use is private residence. Urban renewal was expected to reach the area.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.740469-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/72/7947/63794772/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/73001942.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73001942/a957e56824-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73001942/a957e56824-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.0","author":"EraserGirl","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mechanics_Block_Historic_District_139_Garden_St,_Lawrence,_MA.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">EraserGirl</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mechanics_Block_Historic_District_139_Garden_St,_Lawrence,_MA.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63794772","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mechanics_Block_Historic_District","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6804583"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/essex-county/mechanics-block-historic-district-73001942/"}