{"nrhp_refnum":"89001225","name":"Downer Rowhouses (Adams Street)","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"55 Adams St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Somerville","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.39467330900004,"lon":-71.09989970699996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1989-09-18","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A five-unit brick rowhouse at 55 Adams Street on Winter Hill in Somerville, Massachusetts, built about 1880. It is now used as multifamily housing.","why_significant":"It is described as one of Somerville's earliest rowhouses and a fine example of the Second Empire style. It is also one of the finest brick rows on Winter Hill, built when the hilltop was a fashionable residential enclave. The nomination cites Criterion C at the local level.","narrative":"Five brick rowhouse units share a single four-story building at 55 Adams Street on Winter Hill in Somerville. Built around 1880, the row is recognized as one of the city's earliest rowhouses and as a fine example of the Second Empire style. Its most notable features are five full-height polygonal bays, broken-pedimented dormers, a straight-sided mansard roof with a scallop pattern, and brownstone lintels and sills. The architect is unknown. Cutler Downer and a real estate developer built it on speculation for prosperous middle-class residents, at a time when the top of Winter Hill was a fashionable neighborhood of large lots and architecturally distinguished homes. Downer also built a second brick row behind it, fronting Central Street. The building remains in good condition with no major alterations, keeping its original design, materials and workmanship, and it still serves as multifamily housing. It was listed for its architectural significance at the local level.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Architect unknown; built on speculation by Cutler Downer and a real estate developer","architectural_style":"Second Empire","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Condition good; no major alterations; currently multifamily housing.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:12:59.922345-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/46/7912/63791246/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/89001225.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001225/ac11371009-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001225/ac11371009-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Jameslwoodward","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Downer_Rowhouses_(Central_Street)_Somerville,_MA.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jameslwoodward</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Downer_Rowhouses_(Central_Street)_Somerville,_MA.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63791246","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downer_Rowhouses","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5303117"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/downer-rowhouses-adams-street-89001225/"}