{"nrhp_refnum":"86001800","name":"Fenno, John A., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"171 Lowell Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Newton","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.35133754200007,"lon":-71.21100137799993,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1986-09-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state","local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Gothic Revival residence at 171 Lowell Avenue in Newtonville, Newton, Massachusetts, built about 1854 and moved to its present site around 1885. The architect is unknown.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is a rare and well-preserved example of Gothic Revival architecture in Newton and Newtonville's best example of the style. It is also tied to John A. Fenno, the ninth mayor of Newton, who was its original owner.","narrative":"Built about 1854, this clapboard house at 171 Lowell Avenue in Newtonville is considered the neighborhood's best example of Gothic Revival design. Two steep gable roofs meet to form an L-plan, and tall, narrow bracketed windows and diamond windows beneath each gable apex stress the vertical lines. Pairs of 6/6 sash windows on the second story carry earred label mouldings. A porch with columns on a shingled kneewall was added to the south side in the late 19th century. The house first stood at Walnut Street and Madison Avenue. Its original owner, John A. Fenno (1849-1929), later served as Newton's ninth mayor in 1893-94 and worked as treasurer and superintendent of the Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn Railroad. About 1885 he sold it to George A. Strout, who moved it to its current location. It is listed for its rare, well-preserved Gothic Revival architecture and remains a residence in good condition.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Gothic Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Listed in good condition and in use as a residence; it was moved around 1885 and has a late 19th-century entrance porch.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:01.041852-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/40/7908/63790840/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/86001800.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001800/a90f688c04-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001800/a90f688c04-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NewtonMA_JohnAFennoHouse.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:NewtonMA_JohnAFennoHouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790840","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_A._Fenno_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6217656"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/fenno-john-a-house-86001800/"}