{"nrhp_refnum":"80000438","name":"Dighton Rock","other_names":[],"category":"object","location":{"address":"Across the Taunton River from Dighton in Dighton Rock State Park","address_restricted":false,"city":"Dighton","county":"Bristol County","state":"MA","lat":41.81287516000003,"lon":-71.11004588799995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-07-01","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Historic - Non-Aboriginal","Exploration/Settlement"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A roughly 50-ton gray feldspathic boulder carved with petroglyphs, set on a landfill promontory beside the Taunton River in Dighton Rock State Park, Berkley (Dighton), Bristol County, Massachusetts. It is owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.","why_significant":"The origin of the carved inscriptions is described as one of America's historic mysteries. The figures were first copied in 1680 and have prompted over 600 books and articles and some 35 theories, including Professor Delabarre's claim that they record Miguel Corte-Real's visit in 1511. No definitive evidence supports any single theory.","narrative":"Dighton Rock is a gray feldspathic boulder of about 50 tons beside the Taunton River in a Massachusetts state park. One sloping face carries numerous pecked inscriptions and symbols that appear to combine alphabetic and pictorial forms. Once washed by tidal water, the stone was lifted in 1964 onto a landfill promontory by the state's Department of Natural Resources, though it is now reddening and at risk of crumbling. The carvings were first copied by Rev. John Davenport in 1680, and Cotton Mather described them in 1690. Since then more than 600 books and articles have offered about 35 explanations, from natural weathering to Vikings, Phoenicians and local Indian tribes. The most popular theory, from Professor E. B. Delabarre, reads them as a record of Portuguese explorer Miguel Corte-Real's visit, with his name and the date 1511. Because no explanation can be proven, the rock's lasting interest rests on that enduring mystery.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Rated fair and altered. The boulder was raised in 1964 onto landfill, is reddening through chemical reaction and risks drying out and crumbling. A protective shelter and visitor center was proposed. It is open to the public as a recreational site.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.302117-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/76/7943/63794376/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/80000438.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80000438/9180ce65dd-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80000438/9180ce65dd-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Frank S. Davis","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dighton_Rock-Davis_photograph.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Frank S. Davis</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dighton_Rock-Davis_photograph.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63794376","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dighton_Rock","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3098851"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/bristol-county/dighton-rock-80000438/"}