{"nrhp_refnum":"83003984","name":"Mountain Rest","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Spruce Corner Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Goshen","county":"Hampshire County","state":"MA","lat":42.46054574750005,"lon":-72.83918779315928,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1983-11-10","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Literature","Education","Architecture","Religion","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Mountain Rest is a small missionary retreat of six buildings plus a carriage shed and barn on almost 33 acres of a wooded knoll in Goshen, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, built between 1902 and 1906.","why_significant":"The nomination argues Mountain Rest is an early example of a missionary retreat in the Berkshire foothills and the start of institution-sponsored summer resort camps in the area. It also served as an educational center where returning medical missionaries taught future missionary doctors. Its plain, functional buildings reflect the Protestant ethic and missionary spirit, and it retains integrity of location, design, setting, materials and workmanship.","narrative":"Mountain Rest is a missionary retreat on a wooded hilltop in Goshen, Massachusetts, built between 1902 and 1906. Its six buildings, a barn and a carriage shed sit on nearly 33 acres of land once part of the Barrus farm. The largest building, Scudder Hall, was the center of daily life, while the cottages honor missionaries such as Judson, Kerr and Stuart. All are plain, clapboarded and functional, reflecting the missionary spirit rather than fashionable decoration. Dr. George Dowkontt founded the retreat in 1902 as a place where medical missionaries could rest during furloughs in the United States and teach students preparing for mission medicine. Local masons, Henry Hathaway & Sons, worked on the complex, and visiting missionaries led services at the town's Congregational Church. The retreat closed in 1970 as interest in mission work declined. Livingstone Cottage was heavily remodeled and no longer contributes, but the rest of the complex retains its historic character.","period_of_significance":"1902-1906","architect_builder":"Henry Hathaway & Sons (masons)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The retreat closed on June 27, 1970. Livingstone Cottage was heavily altered in the 1970s and is no longer a contributing component. The barn was converted to a community center in the 1940s and a bakery in the 1970s.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:57.362337-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/89/7954/63795489/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/83003984.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83003984/9e4ef7c628-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83003984/9e4ef7c628-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GoshenMA_MountainRest.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:GoshenMA_MountainRest.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795489","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_Rest","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14715733"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/hampshire-county/mountain-rest-83003984/"}