{"nrhp_refnum":"86001276","name":"Brabrook, E. H., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"42--44 Avon St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cambridge","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.382507737000026,"lon":-71.12378774699994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1986-05-19","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A double house at 42-44 Avon Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts, built in 1849 as a residence, with a stable as an outbuilding. The architect is unknown.","why_significant":"The house stands on the line between the Greek Revival and Bracketed Italianate styles. The nomination calls it the earliest and most elaborate surviving example of this transitional type in Old Cambridge. It is judged significant under Criterion C.","narrative":"Set flush to the street at 42-44 Avon Street in Cambridge, this wood-frame double house dates to 1849 and was built by Ezra H. Brabrook, a furniture dealer. Avon Street was laid out in 1845 on land that had been part of the Lower Common, which stayed largely pasture, orchards and gardens until owners began subdividing in the mid-nineteenth century. The house combines two styles. Greek Revival features include center entrances with sidelights, corner pilaster strips and six-over-six windows. Italianate features include paired brackets under a widely projecting cornice, a full-front porch with square posts and open brackets, and window hoods. The north gable has a round-headed window and a truncated pediment. Other transitional houses exist in Old Cambridge, such as 154 Mount Auburn Street from 1852, but this one is the earliest and most elaborate survivor. That distinction supports its significance for architecture. The building has no recorded major alterations and remains in residential use.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Built by Ezra H. Brabrook, a furniture dealer; architect unknown","architectural_style":"Greek Revival/Bracketed Italianate","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Present use is residential; no major alterations are recorded and the building has not been moved.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:01.834043-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/38/7909/63790938/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/86001276.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001276/616f0e039e-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001276/616f0e039e-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CambridgeMA_EHBrabrookHouse.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:CambridgeMA_EHBrabrookHouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790938","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._H._Brabrook_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5321887"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/brabrook-e-h-house-86001276/"}