{"nrhp_refnum":"82001968","name":"Old Cambridge Baptist Church","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"398 Harvard St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cambridge","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.37162655100008,"lon":-71.11419070699998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-04-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Old Cambridge Baptist Church is a stone Gothic Revival church at 398 Harvard Avenue in Cambridge, Massachusetts, built 1867-70 for the Old Cambridge Baptist Society and designed by Alexander R. Esty.","why_significant":"The church is a handsome example of Gothic Revival religious architecture, with a tall stone spire that is a prominent Cambridge landmark. It shows the post-Civil War shift from the traditional meetinghouse form to the lofty asymmetry of the Gothic Revival. The reviewer recommended listing under Criterion C for its significance in church architecture.","narrative":"Old Cambridge Baptist Church, at 398 Harvard Avenue in Cambridge, is a stone church built between 1867 and 1870 for the Old Cambridge Baptist Society. Architect Alexander R. Esty designed it in the Gothic Revival style, and it continues to serve as a church. Its tall stone spire is a prominent landmark in the city. Pointed arches, buttresses, turrets and spires combine in the manner that prevailed in the late 1860s. The building reflects the change after the Civil War from the traditional meetinghouse form to the lofty asymmetry of the Gothic Revival. Its exterior resembles H.H. Richardson's Church of the Unity in Springfield, Massachusetts. A fire in 1889 led to a major remodelling of the interior, and only the nave remains unaltered. Its architectural importance as an example of post-Civil War church design is the basis for its listing.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Alexander R. Esty","architectural_style":"Gothic Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Still in use as a church; the interior was greatly remodelled after an 1889 fire, leaving only the nave unaltered.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:54.836153-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/7/7906/63790607/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/82001968.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001968/2f12498815-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001968/2f12498815-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Daderot","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Cambridge_Baptist_Church_-_398_Harvard_Street,_Cambridge,_MA_-_IMG_4088.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Daderot</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Cambridge_Baptist_Church_-_398_Harvard_Street,_Cambridge,_MA_-_IMG_4088.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"86003654","name":"Harvard Square Historic District (Boundary Increase)","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/massachusetts/harvard-square-historic-district-boundary-increase-86003654/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790607","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Cambridge_Baptist_Church","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7083577"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/old-cambridge-baptist-church-82001968/"}