{"nrhp_refnum":"83000621","name":"Ashley House","other_names":["\"Aunt Polly's House\""],"category":"building","location":{"address":"3159 Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Fall River","county":"Bristol County","state":"MA","lat":41.739386515000035,"lon":-71.12985788199995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1983-02-16","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Federal style house at 3159 North Main Street in Fall River, Massachusetts, built about 1790-1800 as a residence for the Ashley family.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it an outstanding local example of the Federal style, with a fine pedimented doorway, fanlight and splayed wooden lintels. It is one of six houses in the Steep Brook area considered the best representatives of Fall River's pre-industrial period. It meets criteria A and C.","narrative":"Built about 1790-1800 at 3159 North Main Street in Fall River, this two-story house with a gable roof was the home of the Ashley family. Local tradition holds that five generations of Ashleys owned and lived in it, and it was often called \"Aunt Polly's House.\" The five-bay front follows an 18th-century farmhouse pattern, updated with Federal period features: a doorway with reeded pilasters, a broken pediment and a semicircular fanlight, plus splayed lintels over the first-floor windows. Two side chimneys suggest a center hall plan. Granite steps and a terraced hillside with retaining walls also survive. The house is one of six in the Steep Brook area regarded as the best examples of Fall River's pre-industrial period, before the first textile mill was built in 1813. Its rural setting recalls the city's agricultural origins. It was listed for its architecture and its link to early settlement.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Federal","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Listed present use is single family residence; exterior walls are covered in asbestos shingle.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:56.541657-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/43/7894/63789443/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/83000621.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83000621/9d8d4d254c-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83000621/9d8d4d254c-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Unknown authorUnknown author","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FallRiverMA_AshleyHouse.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Unknown authorUnknown author</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FallRiverMA_AshleyHouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63789443","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashley_House_(Fall_River,_Massachusetts)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4805480"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/bristol-county/ashley-house-83000621/"}