{"nrhp_refnum":"89000550","name":"Plimpton, Simon, Farmhouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"561 South St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Southbridge","county":"Worcester County","state":"MA","lat":42.07520501600007,"lon":-72.05485909656531,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1989-06-22","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-and-a-half story, five-bay Federal-style farmhouse at 561 South Street, Southbridge, Massachusetts, dated to 1819 by a historical society leaflet, with a barn on a 9.2-acre rural parcel.","why_significant":"The nomination ties the house to Southbridge's settlement period and the growth of its mill economy through the Plimpton family. It also values the house as a regionally significant center-chimney form and one of the best preserved examples of 19th-century rural architecture in the town.","narrative":"This farmhouse at 561 South Street in Southbridge is a two-and-a-half story, five-bay, center-entry house with a central chimney, gable roof and double-pile plan, a form popular in Central Massachusetts from the late 18th to the mid-19th century. A local leaflet dates it to 1819, though the broad eaves and Greek Revival doorframes suggest mid-century changes, and a porch was added across the facade later in the 19th century. Simon Plimpton is said to have built it with his brother Baxter on land that was part of a tract settled by Col. Daniel Plimpton, who came from Medfield in 1738. Plimpton family members used nearby water power for cotton spinning and wool carding from about 1812, and a shuttle factory opened across the road around 1846. The house, its barn and the surrounding open land were listed for their link to Southbridge's settlement and mill economy and as a well-preserved rural house.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Architect unknown; said to have been built by Simon Plimpton together with his brother Baxter","architectural_style":"Federal","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Condition described as good; present and original use is residential, and the house retains a barn and much of its rural setting.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:02.066451-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/63/7934/63793463/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/89000550.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89000550/1cdaaae640-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89000550/1cdaaae640-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SouthbridgeMA_SimonPlimptonFarmhouse.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:SouthbridgeMA_SimonPlimptonFarmhouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63793463","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Plimpton_Farmhouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7519551"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/worcester-county/plimpton-simon-farmhouse-89000550/"}