{"nrhp_refnum":"75000288","name":"Peak House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"347 Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Medfield","county":"Norfolk County","state":"MA","lat":42.189980596000055,"lon":-71.29679375699999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1975-09-05","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Conservation","Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-room, one-and-one-half-story 17th century cottage at 347 Main Street, Medfield, Massachusetts, built in 1677 for Benjamin Clark and now a museum run by the Medfield Historical Society.","why_significant":"It is one of the few surviving examples of the one-room cottage type that was once the most common early settler dwelling. Its exceptionally steep roof is the highest 17th century pitch on record, and its roof of principal rafters without purlins may be the earliest known example. Its 1924 restoration, advised by William Sumner Appleton, places it among the earliest historic preservation efforts.","narrative":"Peak House, at 347 Main Street in Medfield, is a small timber cottage built in 1677 for Benjamin Clark. It measures about 24 by 15 feet and rises one and one-half stories under an unusually steep roof, which gave the house its name. Researchers have described the roof pitch as the highest recorded for a 17th century building. The roof frame is exposed and uses only principal rafters, without purlins, joined with bridle, mortise and tenon, and dovetail joints. The house is one of the few surviving examples of the one-room cottage type once common among early settlers, since most were later enlarged or altered. The Clark family owned it until 1818, and several members served in town and colonial government. The Medfield Historical Society received the house in 1924 and restored it with advice from William Sumner Appleton, making it an early preservation project. It now operates as a museum of colonial life.","period_of_significance":"1600-1699","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Colonial","criteria":[],"status_note":"Excellent condition, restored in 1924 and used as a museum of colonial living.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:54.047694-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/82/7963/63796382/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/75000288.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75000288/7e370591ab-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75000288/7e370591ab-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Kenneth C. Zirkel","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Peak_House,_Medfield_Massachusetts.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Kenneth C. Zirkel</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Peak_House,_Medfield_Massachusetts.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63796382","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_House_(Medfield,_Massachusetts)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2065833"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/norfolk-county/peak-house-75000288/"}