Middlefield Center Historic District
Why it's listed
Middlefield Center is the historic heart of a hill town in the Berkshire foothills of Hampshire County, Massachusetts. The district runs mainly along Skyline Trail, with Bell Road and Town Hill Road crossing it to form a core of church, store, old town hall and closely spaced houses. Farther out, homes are set among fields and woodland, with long views west toward the Berkshires. Development began after the town's 1783 incorporation, so the earliest surviving buildings are Federal in style, including houses with reeded corner pilasters, a rare detail in the region. Greek Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne, Colonial Revival and Craftsman buildings followed. The Mack General Store, a Congregational church assembled from buildings of different periods, the Mack Cemetery and the agricultural fairgrounds with its 1859 hall show how commerce, worship and farming shaped the village. The district contains 54 contributing resources, and the fair has run nearly every year since the 1850s.
Significance in brief: The district is the historic core of Middlefield, first settled after the town's 1783 incorporation. It preserves a range of architecture from Federal through Craftsman styles, including Federal houses with unusual reeded corner pilasters. It also reflects the town's commercial, religious, civic and agricultural life, including the long-running agricultural fair.
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 12000827, listed October 3, 2012. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 138-188 Skyline Trail, & 7 Bell Rd., Middlefield |
|---|---|
| County | Hampshire County |
| Listed | October 3, 2012 |
| Reference number | 12000827 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architectural style | Federal, Greek Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne, Colonial Revival, Craftsman; mixed |
| Areas of significance | Agriculture, Architecture, Community Planning and Development |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The core still contains a church, a store with a post office, and the old town hall, now a senior center and historical museum. Fairgrounds and residences also remain in use. |
| Acreage | 292 |
| Coordinates | 42.35264, -73.01647 (NPS GIS) |
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.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 12000827.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q16895125
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.