{"nrhp_refnum":"86001864","name":"Potter Estate","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"65--71 Walnut Pk.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Newton","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.35657000300006,"lon":-71.19431801460908,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1986-12-23","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state","local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Mansard-style mansion at 65-71 Walnut Park in Newton Corner, Newton, Massachusetts, built in the late 1860s by an unknown architect. It sits on about 12.2 acres facing an oval residential park and is now used as a convent.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is a high-style Mansard mansion of sophisticated design, with a high level of workmanship and materials. Its flamboyant, irregular form contrasts with the restrained, symmetrical houses typical of Newton Corner in the Civil War period. It is also tied to the suburban growth of Newton Corner and to Walnut Park, one of the parks laid out by landscape architect Alexander Wadsworth.","narrative":"Set on roughly 12 acres facing Walnut Park in Newton Corner, this mansion was built in the late 1860s, apparently by John C. Potter, Jr., a Boston shoe and leather entrepreneur. Its architect is unknown. The clapboard house is a high-style example of the Mansard mode, with an irregular plan, an exaggerated roof profile, Mansard pavilions and large brackets. Its flamboyance contrasts with the restrained, symmetrical houses common in the neighborhood at the time. The original porch was later redesigned as a Colonial Revival veranda while banker Joseph Flanagan, who acquired the property around 1894, owned it. Surviving features of the estate include a carriage house, cast iron fencing and a small jerkin-roofed gardener's cottage. The house reflects the suburban expansion of Newton Corner after commuter rail service began in 1844, and Walnut Park was one of three subdivision parks designed by Alexander Wadsworth. It is recognized for its design quality and workmanship. The property is in very good condition and serves as a convent.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Architect unknown; built by John C. Potter, Jr.","architectural_style":"Mansard","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Condition is described as very good; present use is a convent.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:00.632869-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/82/7910/63791082/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/86001864.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001864/6bfdfb08c6-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001864/6bfdfb08c6-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"Thomas Kelley from Boston, MA","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Potter_Estate,_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:Potter_Estate,_Newton,_Massachusetts.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63791082","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potter_Estate","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7235257"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/potter-estate-86001864/"}