{"nrhp_refnum":"84002404","name":"Morse, Moses, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"311 Pelham St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Methuen","county":"Essex County","state":"MA","lat":42.72777271700005,"lon":-71.23325272399995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1984-01-20","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A large 2½-story clapboard farmhouse at 311 Pelham Street in the rural northwest corner of Methuen, Essex County, Massachusetts, dated to 1762. It is a vernacular building with Georgian elements and an unknown architect.","why_significant":"The house is presented as an early farmstead representing 18th-century rural architecture in Methuen. It was built for farmers like Moses Morse who sold produce to markets in Salem and Newburyport, and later Lowell and Lawrence. It retains integrity of location, design, setting, materials and workmanship and is argued to meet criterion C.","narrative":"Dating to 1762, this large 2½-story farmhouse on Pelham Street sits in the rural northwest corner of Methuen. Built as a farmstead and still a private home, it combines vernacular construction with Georgian elements. The clapboard-clad building rests on a granite foundation and has a five-bay facade, a massive central chimney and an 18th-century ell that survive from the original period. Later changes include 2/2 windows and an Italianate porch hood with pendant brackets over the sidelit central entry, added in the late 19th century. The off-center chimney may indicate that the house grew from three bays to five. The house is considered significant as an example of 18th-century farm architecture in Methuen, where such dwellings were built by farmers like Moses Morse who sold produce to markets in Salem and Newburyport, and later Lowell and Lawrence. Its architectural character and integrity of location, design, setting, materials and workmanship support its listing.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Vernacular (with Georgian elements)","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Present use is a private residence, the same as its original use. Alterations include 2/2 sash and an entry hood added in the late 19th century.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:57.432311-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/36/7901/63790136/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/84002404.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/84002404/154a379b35-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/84002404/154a379b35-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"EraserGirl","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moses_Morse_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">EraserGirl</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moses_Morse_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790136","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moses_Morse_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6915889"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/essex-county/morse-moses-house-84002404/"}