{"nrhp_refnum":"82004967","name":"Octagon House","other_names":["Watson-Steiger-Loomis House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"28 King St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Westfield","county":"Hampden County","state":"MA","lat":42.121581442000036,"lon":-72.75479795999996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-04-01","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story wood-frame octagonal house at 28 King Street in Westfield, Massachusetts, built between 1858 and 1864 (about 1861) for Joseph Watson, with a rear ell added in the 1870s.","why_significant":"The house is a fine example of the octagon style promoted by Orson Squire Fowler, in the less ornate form that evolved in Massachusetts. It is the only one of three octagonal cottages originally in Westfield that survives intact. It is also associated with Albert Steiger, founder of the Steiger Department Stores, who lived there in the 1880s-90s.","narrative":"This octagonal house at 28 King Street in Westfield, Massachusetts, was built around 1861 for Joseph Watson. It has two stories of wood frame construction with clapboard siding, a low-pitched metal roof on paired carved brackets, and a central belvedere that echoes the shape of the house. Inside, a spiral staircase rises to the second floor and the cupola. A rear ell was added around 1870, and a Queen Anne style porch was added later. The house follows the octagon design promoted by Orson Squire Fowler in A Home for All, in the plainer form common in Massachusetts. It is the only one of three octagonal cottages once found in Westfield that still stands intact. The property is also tied to Albert Steiger, founder of the Steiger Department Stores, who lived there in the 1880s and 1890s. The Loomis family owned it from 1908 through the 1970s.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Octagon style","criteria":["B","C"],"status_note":"Listed as occupied and used as a private residence; a 1982 city letter says it shows significant decay. Alterations include a Queen Anne style porch and some replaced windows.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.467301-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/99/7951/63795199/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/82004967.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82004967/a143c210ac-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82004967/a143c210ac-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 3.0","author":"John Phelan","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Octagon_House,_Westfield_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:Octagon_House,_Westfield_MA.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"08000506","name":"Westfield Center Commercial Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/massachusetts/westfield-center-commercial-historic-district-08000506/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795199","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octagon_House_(Westfield,_Massachusetts)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7076717"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/hampden-county/octagon-house-82004967/"}