Church-Lafayette Streets Historic District

Fourteen contiguous residential properties line Church and Lafayette Streets at the southern end of Lake Quannapowitt in Wakefield, Massachusetts. Eleven contribute to the district and three are intrusions. Church Street was laid out in 1681 as part of the town's main east-west route, and Lafayette Street was laid out in 1824 when the heirs of Caleb Prentiss subdivided their land. The oldest building is the Hartshorne House, whose first room is believed to date from 1681 and which was later enlarged in the Federal period. Along Church Street stand several Federal houses from about 1790 to 1814, including one with brick ends and a clapboard front. Lafayette Street holds Greek Revival houses from the 1830s. All are wood-framed, some with added siding, and most retain their original form despite rear additions. Together they document residential growth in the area during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.