{"nrhp_refnum":"86001758","name":"Our Lady Help of Christians Historic District","other_names":[],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Adams and Washington Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Newton","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.355201121500045,"lon":-71.19739535665408,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1986-09-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state","local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A 6.6-acre district in the Nonantum village of Newton, Massachusetts, at Washington and Adams streets, made up of a Gothic Revival church, rectory, convent and Catholic high school, built between 1873 and 1924.","why_significant":"The district is an important complex of red-brick Gothic architecture in Newton. Part of it was designed by the church architect James Murphy of Providence. It is also tied to the growth of the village of Nonantum and to the parish's early educational programs. The high school was first listed as non-contributing, and later documentation reclassified it as contributing.","narrative":"Our Lady Help of Christians is a cluster of red-brick Gothic Revival buildings on 6.6 landscaped acres in Nonantum, Newton, enclosed by a wrought-iron fence. The church, begun in 1873 and completed in 1875, was designed by Providence architect James Murphy, who was known for Catholic churches across New England. It has a tall central tower and spire. Around 1900 the church was remodeled, with transepts and a three-porch facade added to correct construction defects. A rectory of the late 1880s and a convent from 1890 to 1893 followed. The parish grew from Irish immigrants settling in the area and was led first by the Rev. Michael Green, then by the Rev. Michael Dolan, who built up its schools. The former boiler house held classrooms for the high school and is thought to be the first Catholic parish high school in Massachusetts. Newton Catholic High School, designed by Edward T.P. Graham, opened in 1924 and was later recognized as contributing to the district.","period_of_significance":"1875-1924","architect_builder":"James Murphy (church); Edward T.P. Graham (Newton Catholic High School); J.W. Wentworth (brickwork contractor for the church)","architectural_style":"Gothic Revival (the convent is described as more closely based on Colonial Revival)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"General condition is good. The church, school and convent are in use, and the former heating plant now houses a thrift and gift shop. The Adams Street school was demolished in 1962.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:02.260401-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/92/7916/63791692/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/86001758.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001758/929e8bc8ff-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001758/929e8bc8ff-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"Thomas Kelley from Boston, MA","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Our_Lady_Help_of_Christians,_Newton,_Massachusetts.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Thomas Kelley from Boston, MA</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Our_Lady_Help_of_Christians,_Newton,_Massachusetts.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63791692","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_Help_of_Christians_Historic_District_(Newton,_Massachusetts)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7110721"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/our-lady-help-of-christians-historic-district-86001758/"}