{"nrhp_refnum":"89001282","name":"Russell, Philemon, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"25 Russell St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Somerville","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.39272255800006,"lon":-71.12267455799997,"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 ca. 1850 Greek Revival farmhouse at 25 Russell Street in the Davis Square area of Somerville, Massachusetts, near the Cambridge border. It is a clapboard house on its original site, with no known architect.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is one of the best-preserved Greek Revival residences in Somerville and one of the few surviving three-bay, 2 1/2-story Greek Revival sidehall farmhouses. It also appears to be among the earliest homes between North Street (now Massachusetts Avenue) and Davis Square. It is tied to Philemon Russell, a farmer and nurseryman who subdivided his land in 1845.","narrative":"Built around 1850 as a farmhouse, this Greek Revival home at 25 Russell Street sits in an urban residential neighborhood near the Somerville and Cambridge border. It is a three-bay, 2 1/2-story sidehall house clad in clapboard, with its enclosed gable end facing the street. Notable features include six-over-six sash windows, an offset entrance framed by a transom and sidelights, a full-width one-story Doric porch, wide corner pilasters, a slate roof and a two-story rear ell. It has no recorded major alterations and remains in good condition on its original site. The house is considered one of the best-preserved Greek Revival residences in Somerville and among the earliest homes between North Street and Davis Square. It is linked to Philemon Russell, a farmer and nurseryman who subdivided his 50 acres in 1845, creating streets that straddled North Cambridge and Somerville. The Russell family had owned the land since before the Revolution, in an area once called Watson's Plain.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Greek Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Present use is residence; condition is good; no major alterations; on its original site.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:01.580528-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/28/7909/63790928/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/89001282.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001282/b6c3d00e5a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001282/b6c3d00e5a-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SomervilleMA_PhilemonRussellHouse.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_PhilemonRussellHouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790928","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philemon_Russell_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7183024"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/russell-philemon-house-89001282/"}