{"nrhp_refnum":"78000430","name":"Cutter, Ephraim, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"4 Water St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Arlington","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.41643673900006,"lon":-71.15483081599996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-03-29","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A 2½-story Federal style house at 4 Water Street in the center of Arlington, Massachusetts, built in 1803-04 by Ephraim Cutter and moved and turned in 1915.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is significant for its association with the Cutter family, early millers in Menotomy (Arlington), and as one of the few houses of its period remaining in Arlington Center. Ephraim Cutter inherited the family grist mill and built the house in 1804 after prospering as a miller.","narrative":"Built in 1803-04 by miller Ephraim Cutter, this Federal style house at 4 Water Street is one of the few houses of its period left in Arlington Center. It is a rectangular, 2½-story clapboard building with a hip roof, two large chimneys, six-over-six windows and a five-bay facade. In 1915 it was turned 90 degrees and moved back 75 feet to face Water Street, formerly Mill Lane, which led to Cutter's mill, the oldest watermill in the area. A front porch with fluted columns and a pediment was added at that time. The original rear entrance keeps its six-panel door and a bull's eye glass pane. Cutter inherited his father's grist mill in 1795, built a new dam and mill, and became a prosperous miller and church deacon. His family included Dr. Benjamin Cutter, a medical society founder whose research informed Arlington's first published history. Today the building houses the Arlington Advocate, the town's oldest newspaper, published continuously since 1872.","period_of_significance":"c. 1804","architect_builder":"Ephraim Cutter","architectural_style":"Federal","criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in excellent or good condition and occupied; it is now the home of the Arlington Advocate newspaper.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:54.364521-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/14/7957/63795714/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/78000430.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000430/e17e24c292-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000430/e17e24c292-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Daderot","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ephraim_Cutter_House,_ArlingtonMA_-_IMG_2760.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Daderot</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ephraim_Cutter_House,_ArlingtonMA_-_IMG_2760.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"85002691","name":"Arlington Center Historic District (Boundary Increase)","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/massachusetts/arlington-center-historic-district-boundary-increase-85002691/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795714","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ephraim_Cutter_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5382257"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/cutter-ephraim-house-78000430/"}