{"nrhp_refnum":"82000492","name":"Waitt Brick Block","other_names":["Waitt Block"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"422-424 Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Malden","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.42660324900004,"lon":-71.06741698299999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-11-12","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story red brick Greek Revival commercial building built c. 1848 at 422-424 Main Street in the commercial center of Malden, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. It was financed by Thomas Wait, Jr.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the block retains integrity of location, design, setting, materials and workmanship. It is tied to the economic development of Malden Square in the mid-19th century. It is described as the only surviving structure from that period and a fine example of commercial Greek Revival architecture. It is also called the sole link in downtown Malden to locally important families and the city's commercial origins.","narrative":"Built around 1848 on Main Street in downtown Malden, this three-story red pressed brick building was financed by Thomas Wait, Jr., a state representative, town clerk and Baptist deacon. Its Greek Revival design is simple and spare, with symmetrically placed windows, granite lintels and sills, a brick beltcourse and a two-course brick cornice of dentils and sawtooth pattern. Its curved facade still reflects the early street layout. Alterations include a 1894 realignment of Pleasant Street, fires in 1891 and 1940, replaced storefronts and windows, and changes to the roof and chimneys. Over the years it housed a grocery, an oyster and drinking saloon, a milk distribution center, a printer, a rubber goods outlet and an apothecary. Two local newspapers, the Malden Mirror and the Chelsea Record and Temperance Advocate, operated from its upper floors from 1873 to 1891. It was listed as the last surviving mid-19th-century commercial structure in Malden Square.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899, 1900- (specific date circa 1848)","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Greek Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Occupied, privately owned, in commercial use; condition marked good 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 02:11:57.538894-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/64/7956/63795664/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/82000492.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82000492/d97598f042-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82000492/d97598f042-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 3.0","author":"John Phelan","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Waitt_Brick_Block,_Malden_MA.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">John Phelan</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Waitt_Brick_Block,_Malden_MA.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795664","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waite_Brick_Block","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7960654"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/waitt-brick-block-82000492/"}