Beaver Mill
Why it's listed
Beaver Mill is a large textile mill complex on Beaver Street in North Adams, set in a narrow valley beside the North Branch of the Hoosic River. Three attached buildings, mostly four stories of brick, run 418 feet along the street. The southern building began as a stone mill in 1833, was rebuilt in stone after a fire in 1850, and was raised in brick between 1894 and 1896, when the other two sections reached their present form. Nearby are a former company store, a wooden storage building and rows of company-built workers' housing. The mill is the oldest surviving mill structure in North Adams and its only remaining stone mill. In the late nineteenth century it was owned by A. C. Houghton, the city's founding father and first mayor. In 1930 it became the first North Adams home of Sprague Electric Company, which later employed as many as 5,500 people. Plans were underway to convert it to an arts conservancy center.
Significance in brief: The original section is the oldest surviving mill structure in North Adams and its only surviving stone mill. Its nineteenth-century changes reflect the city's industrial growth and shifting industrial architecture. It is also tied to A. C. Houghton, the city's founding father, and later to Sprague Electric Company, a major local employer.
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) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 73000292, listed May 11, 1973. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Beaver St., North Adams |
|---|---|
| County | Berkshire County |
| Listed | May 11, 1973 |
| Reference number | 73000292 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 19th Century; specific dates 1833, 1851, 1894-1896 |
| Areas of significance | Industry, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition listed as good and unaltered on its original site; the form says Sprague Electric is leaving the mill and conversion to an arts and antiquities conservancy center is planned. |
| Acreage | 9.5 |
| Coordinates | 42.70341, -73.09816 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 73000292.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4878134
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.