{"nrhp_refnum":"80000474","name":"Gunn and Hubbard Blocks","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"463-477 State St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Springfield","county":"Hampden County","state":"MA","lat":42.107613650000076,"lon":-72.57726574299994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-12-03","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Two adjoining three-story brick commercial blocks at 463-477 State Street, at the southeast corner of State and Walnut Streets in Springfield, Massachusetts, built circa 1830 (Gunn Block) and circa 1835 (Hubbard Block), opposite the Springfield Armory.","why_significant":"The blocks retain integrity of location, design and materials. They are significant as the center of commerce for the Hill area of Springfield and as one of only three early nineteenth-century masonry blocks remaining in the city. They also reflect the rivalry between the Hill and the Main Street commercial area, including a 1856 effort to form a separate town called Delano.","narrative":"Two adjoining three-story brick buildings with pitched roofs stand at the corner of State and Walnut Streets in Springfield, directly across from the Springfield Armory. The Gunn Block was built around 1830 for Elisha Gunn's trade in West Indies goods such as coffee, rum, molasses, sugar and spices. Asahel Hubbard, an inspector of arms at the Armory, had the Hubbard Block built around 1835 as an investment. Between 1820 and 1840 the surrounding Hill area rivaled Main Street as a commercial center, helped by the Armory and by stage traffic on Boston Road. The railroad's arrival in 1839 shifted commerce downtown. Gunn's Hall on the second floor hosted Masonic and Armory worker meetings, including 1856 gatherings that voted to form a separate town called Delano. The blocks keep brownstone lintels and sills and intact upper floors, and they are among only three early nineteenth-century masonry blocks left in the city. Today they hold a tavern, small stores and apartments.","period_of_significance":"1830-35","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Presently occupied by a tavern, small stores and residents; ground floors altered by later storefronts, upper stories largely intact.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.578866-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/67/7951/63795167/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/80000474.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80000474/2a9c3579b8-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80000474/2a9c3579b8-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SpringfieldMA_GunnAndHubbardBlocks.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">User:Magicpiano</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:SpringfieldMA_GunnAndHubbardBlocks.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795167","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunn_and_Hubbard_Blocks","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14715502"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/hampden-county/gunn-and-hubbard-blocks-80000474/"}