Revere Beach Reservation Historic District
Why it's listed
Revere Beach Reservation is a linear public beach district along the Atlantic Ocean in Revere, Massachusetts, about six miles northeast of downtown Boston. The state has owned and operated the three-mile beach as a public beach since 1895, when it was created under a plan by landscape designer Charles Eliot. Eliot's plan moved a railroad from the crest of the dune, replaced it with Revere Beach Boulevard, and cleared private buildings from the sand. The district counts twelve contributing resources: the beach, a police station, a superintendent's house, a bandstand and eight pavilions. Charles Austin of Stickney and Austin designed the structures. The bandstand and first four pavilions date to 1897, the remaining four pavilions to 1905. The police station followed in 1899 in the Italian Renaissance style, and the superintendent's house in 1905. The pavilions were restored in 1994 after damage from the blizzard of 1978. The former bath house was demolished in 1962.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · catalog entry. Generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29).
| Styles | Late Victorian - Renaissance (Victorian Eclectic pavilions; Italian Renaissance police station and superintendent's house) |
|---|---|
| Areas of significance | Community Planning and Development, Architecture, Landscape Architecture |
| Acreage | 60 |
| Boundary source | NPS cultural-resource GIS polygon |
| Full listing page | Revere Beach Reservation Historic District (property record) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.