{"nrhp_refnum":"96000472","name":"Babson-Alling House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"245 Washington St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Gloucester","county":"Essex County","state":"MA","lat":42.62245013200004,"lon":-70.67771903199997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1996-04-26","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Exploration/Settlement"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-and-a-half-story Georgian wood-frame dwelling with gambrel roof, built about 1740 at 245 Washington Street on Gloucester's original Town Green, Massachusetts, with a barn, granite retaining wall, gazebo and surrounding landscape.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it one of Gloucester's finest examples of mid-Georgian architecture. It is also associated with leading local merchants and their families and illustrates changes in Gloucester's maritime industry over about 250 years. It retains integrity of location, design, materials, setting and workmanship.","narrative":"Built around 1740 on Gloucester's original Town Green, this gambrel-roofed Georgian house stands at 245 Washington Street beside a traffic rotary. It has a massive central chimney, a bold modillion cornice, clapboard siding and a granite foundation, plus an early east wing with a half-depth form known as a Beverly jog. Federal-period fanlight entries and a 1930s Colonial Revival portico reflect later changes. A barn, granite retaining wall, gazebo, stone walls and mature trees complete the property, which shares its setting with the relocated White-Ellery House. The house is tied to Gloucester's maritime trade. It is attributed to Joseph Allen or his son William, both traders, and later owners included Boston merchant Isaac Smith, merchant John Low Jr., and Captain Nathaniel Babson. It was listed for its architecture and its link to settlement and maritime commerce, with a period of significance from about 1740 to 1945.","period_of_significance":"ca. 1740-1945","architect_builder":"Unknown (construction generally attributed to either Joseph Allen or his son William Allen, ca. 1740)","architectural_style":"COLONIAL: Georgian","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Currently in use as a single residence; the entry portico base is described as deteriorated.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:04.679207-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/64/7901/63790164/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/96000472.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000472/7674fa1f7d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000472/7674fa1f7d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Unknown authorUnknown author","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Babson-Alling_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Unknown authorUnknown author</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:Babson-Alling_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790164","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babson-Alling_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4838026"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/essex-county/babson-alling-house-96000472/"}