{"nrhp_refnum":"89001280","name":"Cliff, Z. E., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"29 Powderhouse Terr.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Somerville","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.39967928800007,"lon":-71.11659111499995,"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 residential house at 29 Powderhouse Terrace in Somerville, Massachusetts, built around 1900 by Z. E. Cliff on a curving street at the edge of Tufts Park.","why_significant":"The house is described as an excellent and finely articulated example of the Shingle Style, one of the best remaining in Somerville. It was also the residence of Zebedee E. Cliff, a prominent builder-developer, alderman and later mayor, who shaped the city's growth. The form cites Criteria A and C at the local level.","narrative":"This house at 29 Powderhouse Terrace in Somerville was built around 1900 by Zebedee E. Cliff, a carpenter who became one of the city's most active developers. It sits on a curving street at the edge of Tufts Park. The Shingle Style design is marked by a broad gambrel roof, diamond-paned window mullions in several windows, and a recessed \"sucked-in\" gable window with contoured shingled reveals, a hallmark of the style. Polygonal bay windows were added a few years after construction, and the exterior is clapboard. It is considered one of the best remaining Shingle Style buildings in Somerville. Cliff served as an alderman and later as mayor, and built many of the city's finest one- and two-family houses. Powderhouse Terrace was among his best residential developments, and at his death he was credited with over $2 million worth of construction. The house remains in residential use, in excellent condition, and retains its original location and design.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Z. E. Cliff (builder)","architectural_style":"Shingle/Colonial Revival (described in the text as Shingle Style)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Condition is listed as excellent; present use is residential; not moved.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:01.932865-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/74/7912/63791274/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/89001280.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001280/c97967ee5d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001280/c97967ee5d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SomervilleMA_ZECliffHouse.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:SomervilleMA_ZECliffHouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63791274","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Z._E._Cliff_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8062864"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/cliff-z-e-house-89001280/"}