{"nrhp_refnum":"83000600","name":"Rockland Almshouse","other_names":["Almshouse"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"198 Spring St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Rockland","county":"Plymouth County","state":"MA","lat":42.114553307500046,"lon":-70.91192228632465,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1983-04-28","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A municipal almshouse complex at 198 Spring Street, Rockland, Massachusetts, built in 1876 on a six-acre site with an infirmary addition in 1899, plus a barn, a \"tramp house\" and two chicken coops.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is a virtually intact and regionally rare surviving example of mid to late 19th century municipal almshouse architecture. It also reflects Rockland's community development after its 1874 incorporation and the social and humanitarian values of the period. It was in continuous use as an almshouse for 103 years.","narrative":"Set on a six-acre lot beside French's Stream, this L-plan almshouse in Rockland was built in 1876, shortly after the town separated from Abington. Its 2½-story clapboard form shows vernacular, transitional Greek Revival and Italianate styling, with broad proportions, regular windows and little ornament. An infirmary addition in 1899 completed the present shape. Inside are dormitory rooms, communal bathrooms and a dining hall with a pressed tin ceiling. A barn that predates the almshouse, a small \"tramp house\" for indigent travelers and two chicken coops remain on the grounds. The almshouse served continuously for 103 years until 1979 and briefly became a hospital during the 1918 influenza epidemic. It is considered important because few almshouses of this type survive with such integrity in Massachusetts, and because building a purpose-designed structure, rather than buying a farm, was unusual for the period. The buildings are currently unused, while the land holds garden plots and playing fields.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899; 1900-1982","architect_builder":"Reed and Kelley (draftsmen); Hebberd and Ames (builders)","architectural_style":"Vernacular, transitional Greek Revival/Italianate","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The almshouse closed in 1979 and its buildings are currently not in use; the grounds hold community garden plots and two playing fields.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:57.051624-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/78/7965/63796578/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/83000600.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83000600/d12606e2fa-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83000600/d12606e2fa-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RocklandMA_FormerAlmshouse.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:RocklandMA_FormerAlmshouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63796578","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockland_Almshouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7355430"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/plymouth-county/rockland-almshouse-83000600/"}