{"nrhp_refnum":"89001530","name":"Swasey, James, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"30 Common St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Waltham","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.37722004700004,"lon":-71.23693033399996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1989-09-28","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A modest Greek Revival sidehall-plan house at 30 Common Street in Waltham, Massachusetts, built about 1846 by carpenter James Swasey.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is a well preserved example of a vernacular Greek Revival sidehall-plan dwelling. It also illustrates the mid-19th-century growth of the north central Main Street area as a home for workers and small businessmen. Its ownership history documents local real estate and speculative building practices.","narrative":"This 2½-story clapboard house at 30 Common Street in Waltham was built around 1846 for James Swasey, a carpenter. It follows a vernacular sidehall plan in the Greek Revival style, with a pedimented gable, corner boards, a simple entablature, a side entrance with full sidelights, and a one-story portico on fluted Doric columns. It rests on a granite foundation, has a two-story rear ell, and keeps its original 6/6 windows. The street remains largely residential, though a major commercial district lies around the corner. The property's history shows how house lots were handled in the 1840s. The lot passed through several owners who apparently meant to build on speculation, including cordwainer Lewis Bemis and housewright Daniel Sawyer, but no house was built until Swasey bought it in 1846. Swasey lived there through the nineteenth century, and his widow was still in residence in 1923. The house was listed for its architecture and its link to the area's mid-century development.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"James Swasey--carpenter","architectural_style":"Greek Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Residential use, in good condition, with no major alterations and not moved; a non-contributing garage stands on the lot.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:02.129319-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/26/7917/63791726/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/89001530.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63791726","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Swasey_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6143882"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/swasey-james-house-89001530/"}