{"nrhp_refnum":"97000970","name":"Students House","other_names":["Harry Hamilton Kerr Hall of Northeastern University"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"96 The Fenway","address_restricted":false,"city":"Boston","county":"Suffolk County","state":"MA","lat":42.341954205000036,"lon":-71.09207328999997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1997-09-11","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A six-story brick Federal Revival dormitory building at 96 The Fenway in Boston, built in 1913-14 and designed by Kilham & Hopkins. It is now Kerr Hall of Northeastern University.","why_significant":"The nomination presents it as an unusual example of dormitory housing built by a non-profit group to give female students a safe, healthful place to live in early 20th-century Boston. It reflects Progressive Era reform and the effort to expand women's access to higher education. It is also a well-crafted work of Kilham and Hopkins, an architecture firm known for its interest in housing reform.","narrative":"Built in 1913-14 at 96 The Fenway, facing the Back Bay Fens, this six-story brick dormitory was designed by the Boston firm Kilham & Hopkins in the Federal Revival style. It was built by the organization called Students House to house 85 young women studying in Boston, at a time when many schools lacked dormitories and students often lived in unlicensed rooming houses. The group grew out of efforts by women of Emmanuel Church, an Episcopal congregation in the Back Bay. The facade combines tan brick with cast stone trim, a central entrance framed by paired Ionic columns, and a top floor made to look like a mansard roof. The second floor holds the main public rooms, including a lounge with Ionic columns and pilasters. Dormitory floors sit above. The Depression strained finances, and Students House later merged with the Boston Students Union. The building is now Northeastern University's Kerr Hall. It was listed for its association with Progressive Era reform and for its architecture.","period_of_significance":"1913-1947","architect_builder":"Kilham & Hopkins; Walter H. Kilham; James C. Hopkins","architectural_style":"Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals: Federal Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Described as in excellent condition with few alterations since construction; now used as a Northeastern University hall with dormitory rooms and faculty dining and lounge spaces.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:03.568937-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/4/7970/63797004/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/97000970.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97000970/96e9bededc-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97000970/96e9bededc-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Tim Pierce","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Students_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Tim Pierce</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Students_House.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"71000086","name":"Olmsted Park System","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/massachusetts/olmsted-park-system-71000086/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63797004","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Students_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14715867"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/suffolk-county/students-house-97000970/"}