{"nrhp_refnum":"86001963","name":"House at 68 Maple Street","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"68 Maple St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Newton","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.36008547400007,"lon":-71.18216618599996,"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 single-family house at 68 Maple Street in Newton Corner, Newton, Massachusetts, built in the late 1840s in the Italianate style. It sits on a bluff above the Charles River; the architect is unknown.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it an outstanding and rare Newton example of an early Italianate dwelling of the square, hipped-roof, heavy type, meeting Criterion C. Its oversized acanthus-decorated brackets are the main distinctive feature of an otherwise simple vernacular building. It is also one of several notable Italian villa examples in the Charlesbank area, built when Boston commuters settled Newton Corner's hillsides.","narrative":"Built in the late 1840s, this small Italianate house at 68 Maple Street in Newton Corner sits atop a bluff that once offered a view of the Charles River. Its boxy form is topped by a low-pitched hip roof, and the walls are clad in rusticated flush boarding meant to imitate stone masonry. The most striking feature is the set of oversized brackets, shaped as acanthus-decorated consoles, under the eaves, porch and bay window. Their exaggerated scale suits the building's plain, vernacular design. Henry M. Bates, a Boston banker, lived here. The house reflects the influence of A.J. Downing's publications, which promoted the Italian villa as fitting for rural scenery, and it is one of several notable examples in the Charlesbank area. During the 1850s, Boston commuters built many similar residences on Newton Corner's hillsides. It was listed as a rare early example of the heavy, square, hipped-roof Italianate type in Newton. A porch was removed in the twentieth century, and the house remains a dwelling in good condition.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Italianate","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Condition described as good; present use is a dwelling. A garage stands on the property and a porch was removed in the 20th century.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:01.103955-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/12/7910/63791012/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/86001963.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001963/2d954d5c75-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86001963/2d954d5c75-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NewtonMA_68MapleStreet.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_68MapleStreet.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63791012","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_at_68_Maple_Street","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5914442"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/house-at-68-maple-street-86001963/"}