Westminster Village-Academy Hill Historic District

Westminster Village-Academy Hill Historic District covers about 92 acres at the center of Westminster, Massachusetts, and joins two parts of the town's story. Academy Hill was the site of original settlement in the 1730s and 1740s, with the early meetinghouses and ministers' homes, and it later became a place of large houses for prosperous residents. The center village along Main Street grew rapidly after the fifth Massachusetts turnpike opened around 1800 and brought travelers and trade. Its 72 historic buildings include Federal houses, many Greek Revival homes built by local carpenter-builders, a town hall, churches, the Brick Store, a cracker bakery, and the Forbush Library of 1901. Most are white frame houses set close to the street, creating a consistent small-town view. Westminster lost its chance at a main railroad line and shifted from commerce toward a residential community, which helped preserve its early nineteenth-century character.