{"nrhp_refnum":"78000479","name":"Waters, Asa, Mansion","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"123 Elm St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Millbury","county":"Worcester County","state":"MA","lat":42.190240706000054,"lon":-71.76230000899994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-02-14","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Military","Politics/Government","Architecture","Invention"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story Federal style mansion at 123 Elm Street, on the corner of Elm and School Streets in Millbury, Massachusetts, built 1826-29 on about 1.5 acres. It was allegedly designed by a Mr. Bryant of Boston and built by Captain Louis Bigelow of Worcester.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it the finest Federal style house in Millbury, built with high-quality materials brought by wagon. It is also tied to Asa Waters II, a prominent arms manufacturer, legislator and philanthropist. Notable guests were entertained there.","narrative":"Built between 1826 and 1829 at the corner of Elm and School Streets in Millbury, this three-story Federal style mansion was home to Asa Waters II, an arms manufacturer who held patents for gun making, held US government musket contracts, founded the Millbury Bank, served in the General Court and gave land for an Academy. The square, symmetrical house has clapboard siding, a hip roof with a balustrade, paired Corinthian pilasters and an eight-column, two-story portico on the east side. Materials included pine from the South and Maine, Central American mahogany, Italian marble and Baltimore brick, with all carving done by hand. Guests reportedly included Daniel Webster, Henry Clay, President Taft and Alexander Graham Bell. The town bought the property in 1976 and began restoring it for offices, meeting rooms, a library and a town museum. A garage and stone cistern also stand on the grounds.","period_of_significance":"1826-1829","architect_builder":"Capt. Louis Bigelow, builder; Mr. Bryant, Boston Architect","architectural_style":"Federal style with Georgian Revival details","criteria":[],"status_note":"Owned by the Town of Millbury, purchased in 1976, and undergoing restoration for use as town offices, meeting rooms, a library and a museum on the third floor. The exterior is described as unaltered; interior altered.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.251921-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/72/7972/63797272/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/78000479.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000479/2bc7c50838-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000479/2bc7c50838-1600.webp","licence":"CC0","author":"Daderot","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asa_Waters_Mansion_-_Millbury,_MA_-_DSC04580.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Daderot</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asa_Waters_Mansion_-_Millbury,_MA_-_DSC04580.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63797272","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asa_Waters_Mansion","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4803173"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/worcester-county/waters-asa-mansion-78000479/"}