{"nrhp_refnum":"86001802","name":"First Unitarian Church","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1326 Washington St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Newton","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.34858334000006,"lon":-71.22765841699999,"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 Neo-Gothic granite church with an attached brick and half-timbered parish house at 1326 Washington Street in West Newton village, Newton, Massachusetts. It was dedicated in 1906 and designed by Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson.","why_significant":"The nomination argues that it is an important example of ecclesiastical architecture in Newton and is associated with Ralph Adams Cram. It is cited as one of the firm's four most important early churches, and its furnishings reflect high craftsmanship. The site also carries local history as the former location of Horace Mann's Normal School.","narrative":"Granite walls and an offset crenelated tower define this West Newton church, which was dedicated on October 14, 1906. The church and its brick and half-timbered parish house surround a central courtyard entered through a portal tower. The firm of Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson designed the building on the Perpendicular phase of English Gothic architecture, using a gabled nave and flanking tower with minimal detailing. A published study ranks it among the firm's four most important early churches. Craftspeople supplied the interior wood fittings, pulpit carvings and stained glass, and Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. prepared the landscape plans. The site was previously occupied by Horace Mann's experimental Normal School, and a west aisle window honors that educational role. The congregation, organized in 1848, had earlier worshipped in a wood-frame building from 1860. Alterations have been small, including a tower clock added in 1916, and the church remains in excellent condition.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson","architectural_style":"Neo-Gothic","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Described as in excellent condition and in present use as a church and parish house; alterations are minor.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:12:59.960842-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/18/7911/63791118/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/86001802.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001802/3ac6bded34-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001802/3ac6bded34-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NewtonMA_FirstUnitarianChurch.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_FirstUnitarianChurch.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"90000017","name":"West Newton Village Center Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/massachusetts/west-newton-village-center-historic-district-90000017/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63791118","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Unitarian_Universalist_Society_in_Newton","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5453959"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/first-unitarian-church-86001802/"}