Charlton Center Historic District

Charlton Center is a village core of about 85 acres laid out along a drumlin ridge in central Charlton, Massachusetts. A long elliptical Common anchors the district, with the Town Hall and Charlton High School facing each other across it and a church, cemetery and monuments nearby. Most of the 54 contributing resources are modest houses, many in Federal, Greek Revival, Italianate and early twentieth-century styles, dating from 1775 to 1944. The oldest is the Salem Town House of 1775. Other notable buildings include the Ebenezer Collier House of 1820, described as the finest Federal example in town, and General John Spurr's house of 1798. The center took shape after Ebenezer McIntire donated land for a meetinghouse, common and burying ground in the 1750s and 1760s. Industry and commerce later grew elsewhere in town, leaving the Center as its civic heart. Spacious lots, mature trees and surrounding farmland preserve its village character.