{"nrhp_refnum":"99001115","name":"East Freetown Historic District","other_names":[],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Roughly along Howland, Gurney, Washburn County Rds.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Freetown","county":"Bristol County","state":"MA","lat":41.77274950000006,"lon":-70.96176237017764,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1999-09-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Community Planning and Development","Industry"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A historic district in East Freetown, Freetown, Bristol County, Massachusetts, centered on Fall Brook and its mill pond along Gurney, Washburn, County and East Howland Roads. It contains 104 resources, including houses, a church, a library, cemeteries, stone bridges, dams and industrial sites.","why_significant":"The district is significant at the local level for the quality of its architecture, which shows the community's development from the early 18th century to just after World War II. It keeps several Colonial-period Cape Cod houses, an 1818 granite furnace remnant, stone arched bridges and the 1727 Mile Square Marker. Its industrial sites and compact village layout reveal its growth over time.","narrative":"East Freetown is a small industrial village in the eastern part of Freetown, Massachusetts, arranged around Fall Brook and its mill pond. Settlement began in 1727 when Philip Rounsevell established his homestead, and the district's resources date from that year through 1949. Most houses are modest 1 1/2 story Cape Cod cottages on granite foundations, with later Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, Italianate and Queen Anne examples. A tavern altered in the Queen Anne style, a Congregational church built in 1888, a memorial library opened in 1947 and a working saw mill add to the village. Water-powered industry shaped the place, and remains include dams, mill foundations, the half-dome granite remnant of an iron furnace and arched granite bridges. A small granite Mile Square Marker from about 1727 is the oldest object. Together, the 104 resources show how a rural mill community developed, with space around each building and winding roads.","period_of_significance":"1727-1949","architect_builder":"Abial S. Ashley (builder) and Clothier Franklin Edminister (architect) for the Christian Congregational Church, 1888","architectural_style":"Colonial, Georgian, Late Victorian, Queen Anne, Other: Cape Cod","criteria":[],"status_note":"Eighty of 104 resources contribute; the Gurney Saw Mill, library, church and houses remain in use, while the Furnace/Washburn Store was demolished about 1949 and the Washburn House about 1957.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:03.75641-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/48/7944/63794448/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/99001115.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/99001115/321317636d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/99001115/321317636d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FreetownMA_EastFreetownCongregationalChurch.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:FreetownMA_EastFreetownCongregationalChurch.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63794448","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Freetown,_Massachusetts","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5328390"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/bristol-county/east-freetown-historic-district-99001115/"}