{"nrhp_refnum":"82001913","name":"Belchertown Center Historic District","other_names":["The Common"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Main, Maple, Walnut, Park, and Jabish Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Belchertown","county":"Hampshire County","state":"MA","lat":42.27695550000004,"lon":-72.40148863657399,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-06-02","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Commerce","Transportation","Literature","Architecture","Communications","Religion","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A T-shaped historic district at the geographic center of Belchertown, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, covering the Town Common, part of South Main Street and a section of Maple Street. It contains 66 buildings, mostly 19th-century, along with five intrusions.","why_significant":"The district has been the social, cultural, religious, commercial and political center of the town since the late 18th century. It holds a range of architectural styles, including Federal, Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, Queen Anne and Romanesque, and its buildings reflect the town's prosperity and later residential development. The form cites criteria A and C.","narrative":"Belchertown Center is a T-shaped village core made up of the long Town Common, part of South Main Street and a section of Maple Street. Its 66 buildings are mostly 19th-century and range from Federal and Greek Revival houses to Gothic Revival, Queen Anne and mansard-roofed Victorian homes. Notable buildings include the Congregational Church of 1789-1792, later remodeled, the brownstone Clapp Memorial Library designed by Henry Kilburn, the 1827 Stone House, now a museum, and the 1923 Lawrence Memorial Hall. The district grew along the Bay Road, later the Northampton-Boston Stage Road, and the arrival of the railroad in 1853 shaped Maple Street. It has served since the late 18th century as the town's social, religious, commercial and political center. The Common is lined with mostly white wooden buildings, and a bandstand and Civil War monument stand on it. Its architecture and its role as the town's civic heart led to its listing under criteria A and C.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Multiple; includes Henry Kilburn of New York, Henry Hoag (local builder), and Philetus William Burnett","architectural_style":"Federal, Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, Queen Anne, Romanesque, Italianate, mansard and other Victorian styles","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Building condition varies but is generally good, and most buildings are well maintained. Many on the Common are residences, and some still house stores. Five intrusions are noted, and the Methodist Church was moved here in 1872.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.457286-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/95/7953/63795395/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/82001913.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001913/00b9322da0-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001913/00b9322da0-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 3.0","author":"John Phelan","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Belchertown_Common,_Belchertown_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:Belchertown_Common,_Belchertown_MA.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795395","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belchertown_Center_Historic_District","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4882061"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/hampshire-county/belchertown-center-historic-district-82001913/"}