Osborn Street School
Why it's listed
Osborn Street School is a two-story red and gray brick building with a slate roof, set on a granite foundation at 160 Osborn Street in Fall River. A datestone gives its construction as 1893. It replaced an earlier schoolhouse on the same site. Round-arched windows with voussoirs and an arched recessed entrance bring Romanesque detail to its blocky mass, and a tree-shaded lawn and iron perimeter fence add to its appearance. The city built nine new schools in the 1890s to serve a growing population, and Boston architect Frank Irving Cooper, a Taunton native, designed the very similar Coughlin and Osborn Schools. Cooper, who studied under Henry Hobson Richardson, designed some 200 schools across New England. The school was recognized for its design quality, for representing the late 19th century eight-room grammar school type, and for being the work of a respected school architect, meeting Criteria A and C.
Significance in brief: The school is notable as the work of Frank Irving Cooper, a recognized New England school architect, and as a distinctive example of late 19th century brick eight-room grammar schools whose sturdy construction and detailing rise above simple functionalism. It represents the 1890s school building campaign in Fall River. The form states it meets Criteria A and C.
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 83000699, listed February 16, 1983. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 160 Osborn St., Fall River |
|---|---|
| County | Bristol County |
| Listed | February 16, 1983 |
| Reference number | 83000699 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Frank Irving Cooper |
| Architectural style | Romanesque |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Education, Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed as present use: school, owned by the City of Fall River, at the time of the survey form (1981). |
| Acreage | 1.1 |
| Coordinates | 41.69258, -71.16694 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
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 83000699.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7105765
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.