{"nrhp_refnum":"89002328","name":"Nobility Hill Historic District","other_names":["See Also:84002639","84002860","84002645","84002727","84002702"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Roughly bounded by Chestnut and Maple Sts. and Cedar Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Stoneham","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.47998050000004,"lon":-71.104347788983,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1990-02-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A small residential historic district on Cedar Avenue, Chestnut Street and Maple Street, a few blocks west of Stoneham's town center in Massachusetts. It contains 33 contributing houses and other resources built between the 1860s and 1920s.","why_significant":"The district is described as Stoneham's most cohesive illustration of residential development from the mid-19th through the early 20th century. It shows the shift from large estates of shoe industrialists to modest suburban homes of professionals and small business owners. Several houses are outstanding examples of their style, and five are individually listed.","narrative":"Nobility Hill is a compact residential neighborhood on a hilltop west of Stoneham's Central Square, centered on Cedar Avenue, Chestnut Street and Maple Street. It holds 33 contributing houses, mostly wood-frame, 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 stories, built between the 1860s and 1920s in Italianate, Second Empire, Queen Anne, Stick, Shingle, Colonial Revival and Craftsman styles. Five houses are individually listed. Development began in 1858 with the John Hill estate, followed by the large estates of shoe and tannery families. Surveyor Amasa Farrier's subdivision of small lots signaled a move toward modest suburban homes, and later residents included shoemakers, bankers, carpenters and Boston commuters. The district is considered locally significant for architecture and for community development, since it shows the town's industrial and suburban eras more fully than any other area. Mid-20th-century demolition of the Mawhinney and Tidd estates brought ranch houses, a church and garages, which are excluded as noncontributing, though a stone wall and gate from the Tidd estate remain.","period_of_significance":"ca. 1860 - ca. 1920","architect_builder":"Farrier, Amasa","architectural_style":"Late Victorian / Italianate, Second Empire, Queen Anne, Stick, Shingle; Late 19th Century Revivals / Colonial Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Condition varies: many buildings are in excellent condition, some have altered siding or windows, and a small number suffer from neglect. Current function is single-dwelling residential with secondary structures.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:02.267658-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/64/7913/63791364/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/89002328.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89002328/ecf2c73a62-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89002328/ecf2c73a62-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"User:Magicpiano, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:StonehamMA_NobilityHillHD_CedarStreet.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63791364","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobility_Hill_Historic_District","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7045661"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/nobility-hill-historic-district-89002328/"}