{"nrhp_refnum":"86001898","name":"Working Boys Home","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"333 Nahanton St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Newton","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.29986427100005,"lon":-71.20434571299995,"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 red brick Romanesque Revival building at 333 Nahanton Street in Newton Highlands, Newton, Massachusetts, built in 1896 as a home for homeless and working boys. It sits on a hilltop overlooking the Charles River.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is a major example of Romanesque Revival architecture in Newton (criterion C). It was designed by Boston church architects William H. and John A. McGinty and has a distinctive 7-story clock tower. It also housed a Catholic charitable institution that served generations of boys.","narrative":"Built in 1896 on a hilltop above the Charles River in Newton Highlands, this red brick building was the second Working Boys Home, an institution founded in Boston in 1883 by Rev. David H. Roche. It housed homeless boys aged 12 to 17 who worked and contributed part of their wages, and it provided schooling, trade training and religious instruction. Boston church architects William H. and John A. McGinty designed it in the Romanesque Revival style. The H-shaped plan rises 4-1/2 stories above a raised basement, with a 13-bay front, granite trim, a slate roof, copper cupolas and a 7-story clock tower with a pyramidal roof. The construction cost of $300,000 nearly bankrupted the organization, which was reorganized in 1907 under the Xaverian Brothers. The home closed in 1961, later served as a novitiate, and was sold in 1979 for use as a community center. It is recognized as a major local example of its architectural style.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"W.H. & J.A. McGintly (also spelled McGinty); William H. and John A. McGinty","architectural_style":"Romanesque Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Condition described as good; now used as a Jewish Community Center after the buildings were sold in 1979.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:01.880908-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/38/7912/63791238/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/86001898.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001898/a64209fedb-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001898/a64209fedb-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NewtonMA_WorkingBoysHome.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_WorkingBoysHome.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63791238","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Working_Boys_Home","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8034894"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/working-boys-home-86001898/"}