{"nrhp_refnum":"80000631","name":"Fitch, C.H., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"15 Oread St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Worcester","county":"Worcester County","state":"MA","lat":42.255698420000044,"lon":-71.81085713699997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-03-05","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state","local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-and-one-half-storey brick Victorian house at 15 Oread Street, Worcester, Massachusetts, built around 1878 for boot manufacturer Charles H. Fitch. Architect unknown.","why_significant":"The house is described as an unusual example of Victorian architecture, blending Italianate features recalled from 1850s Worcester houses with details more typical of local Victorian Gothic. It is also tied to Charles Fitch, a boot manufacturer in Worcester's boot and shoe industry, which peaked in the 1870s and 1880s. It is a rare reminder of the Victorian development of the Main Street South area, much of which has been abandoned or demolished.","narrative":"Built around 1878 at 15 Oread Street in Worcester, this brick house was first occupied by Charles H. Fitch, a boot manufacturer who headed a firm that went through several names, including Fitch and Company. His factory on Mulberry Street produced heavy workboots during the years when Worcester's boot and shoe industry was at its height. The house combines a two-and-one-half-storey form, hip roof, deep brackets and double bow front, recalling Italianate houses of the 1850s, with a rock-faced sandstone foundation, stone and brick banding, a decorative central gable with balcony, and an open entry porch with jig-saw railing, which are more typical of local Victorian Gothic work. A dressed granite retaining wall, gateposts and steps survive along the street frontage. Surrounding blocks near Main Street South have seen widespread abandonment and demolition, so the house stands as a rare surviving example of the area's Victorian development. It was used as a boarding house when surveyed.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Victorian (blending Italianate and Victorian Gothic features)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Used as a boarding house at the time of the survey; alterations described as minor.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:54.534521-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/33/7930/63793033/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/80000631.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80000631/277d876c34-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80000631/277d876c34-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Pvmoutside","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:C.H._Fitch_House_Worcester_MA.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Pvmoutside</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:C.H._Fitch_House_Worcester_MA.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63793033","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C.H._Fitch_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5006111"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/worcester-county/fitch-c-h-house-80000631/"}