Irving Square Historic District

Irving Square is a commercial district on the south side of the railroad tracks in South Framingham, Massachusetts. Its twenty-one buildings, mostly one to four story brick blocks built between 1880 and 1930, cluster around the wide intersection of Irving and Hollis Streets. The area grew because the Boston-Worcester railroad was routed through South Framingham in 1834, turning a small village into a busy rail junction. The Odd Fellows Block of 1876 was the first brick commercial block in town and shifted development away from the station toward the radiating streets. A building boom followed, producing structures such as the 1890 Tribune Building, which also housed town offices and town meetings until a town hall opened in 1927. Later additions include Classical Revival and Georgian Revival blocks, several designed by architect Charles M. Baker. The district is significant for its role in making South Framingham the town's center and for its representative commercial architecture. It remains in active use today.