Spencer Town Center Historic District

Spencer's town center is a stretch of Main Street lined with about 50 commercial, civic, religious and residential buildings, most dating from the second half of the 19th century. The area has served as the town's business and civic center since the 1743 establishment of a meeting house, training ground and cemetery, though no buildings from that early period survive. Growth in the shoe and boot industry, along with wire manufacturing, produced the brick factories, bank blocks and fine houses seen today. Wealthy manufacturers also donated major buildings, including the Sugden Library and the David Prouty High School. Worcester architects Elbridge Boyden and Stephen C. Earle designed several landmarks, among them Denny Hall, the First Congregational Church and the former Universalist Church. Styles range from Greek Revival and Italianate to Second Empire and Romanesque Revival. The 1926 Colonial Revival Memorial Town Hall is the last institutional building added. The district was listed for its architecture and for its links to industrialization and local manufacturers.