{"nrhp_refnum":"80000642","name":"First Baptist Church","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1013 Worcester Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Framingham","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.36477200000007,"lon":-71.10497444099997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-04-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Federalist-style timber-frame Baptist church at 1013 Worcester Road in Framingham Centre, Framingham, Massachusetts, designed by Solomon Willard and built by Colonel David Harrington, completed in 1826.","why_significant":"It is the oldest surviving church building in Framingham and the finest example of Federalist architecture in the town, retaining nearly all the original decorative detail of its neo-classical facade. It is also linked to the early nineteenth-century growth of Framingham Centre along the Boston-Worcester Turnpike and to Boston architect Solomon Willard, for whom it is the only known church design.","narrative":"Standing on Worcester Road in Framingham Centre, this timber-frame Baptist church was begun in 1825, completed in 1826 and dedicated on January 1, 1827. Boston architect Solomon Willard designed it, and Colonel David Harrington built it, to replace a smaller Baptist church. Its facade features an Ionic portico with two pairs of columns, paired Ionic pilasters, a Palladian window and a multi-stage tower topped by a steeple and weathervane. It is the oldest church building still standing in Framingham and the finest Federalist building in the town. It reflects the brief commercial growth of Framingham Centre along the Boston-Worcester Turnpike, which ended after the turnpike company dissolved in 1843 and the railroad bypassed the area in 1853. Willard is better known for the Bunker Hill Monument, and this is the only church he is known to have designed. Alterations include a 1856 basement enclosure, an 1886 west addition and a 1910 slate roof. The same congregation has used it continuously.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"Solomon Willard, Architect; Colonel David Harrington, Builder","architectural_style":"Federalist","criteria":[],"status_note":"Still in use by the same congregation since its 1827 dedication; condition listed as fair and altered.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.425102-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/96/7955/63795596/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/80000642.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80000642/191785c3f7-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80000642/191785c3f7-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FraminghamMA_FirstBaptistChurch.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:FraminghamMA_FirstBaptistChurch.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"90000128","name":"Central Square Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/massachusetts/central-square-historic-district-90000128/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795596","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Baptist_Church_(Framingham,_Massachusetts)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5452387"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/first-baptist-church-80000642/"}