{"nrhp_refnum":"74000379","name":"Adams Academy","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"8 Adams St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Quincy","county":"Norfolk County","state":"MA","lat":42.253779320000035,"lon":-71.00616241528871,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1974-09-06","is_nhl":true,"nhl_designated_date":"1994-04-19","areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national","state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A High Victorian Gothic school building at 8 Adams Street near Quincy Center, Massachusetts, built in 1872 of rough-faced granite ashlar with brick trim, designed by Ware and Van Brunt.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it a fine architectural example of a private schoolhouse of 100 years ago, virtually unchanged since it housed a small boys' school. It also carries the legacy of John Adams, whose gift of land and funds led to its construction on the site of the Hancock cellar and well. The architects were a leading Boston firm of the late 19th century.","narrative":"Adams Academy is a granite schoolhouse at 8 Adams Street in Quincy, Massachusetts, completed in 1872 to designs by the Boston architects Ware and Van Brunt. Built in High Victorian Gothic style of rough-faced ashlar with brick trim, it is composed of three Gothic-gabled units, with a carved granite band over the entrance arch reading its name. Inside, two large end rooms have high vaulted ceilings with exposed decorated timbers. The school grew from a gift by John Adams, second President, who gave land to the town for a school on the site of the old Hancock house cellar. Funds managed by the Adams Temple and School Fund paid for construction, and Clement and Creesy of Boston served as builders. The academy taught boys until 1908 and later served civic purposes. Since 1972 it has been leased as a historical society, library and museum. Exterior changes have been limited to the loss of a tall wooden tower and a new roof of one colour.","period_of_significance":"1872 (19th Century)","architect_builder":"Architects Ware and Van Brunt of Boston; builders Clement and Creesy, carpenter contractors of Boston","architectural_style":"High Victorian Gothic","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed in excellent condition and occupied; leased since 1972 for use as a historical society, library and museum. A missing central wooden tower was slated to be replaced.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.125238-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/14/7963/63796314/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/74000379.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74000379/9d8b3b65c5-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74000379/9d8b3b65c5-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Sswonk","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Adams_Academy.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Sswonk</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:Adams_Academy.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63796314","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adams_Academy","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2364273"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/norfolk-county/adams-academy-74000379/"}