Angier, John B., House
Why it's listed
Built in 1842 at 129 High Street in Medford, this Gothic Revival cottage was designed by architect Alexander Jackson Davis for John B. Angier, a local schoolmaster, and his wife Abby S. Adams, a granddaughter of President John Adams. The grounds were laid out by Andrew Jackson Downing, though that landscape has since been lost. The masonry house, stuccoed in the early twentieth century, has a T-shaped plan, three steep gables with elaborate bargeboards, a slate roof and a long porch with Gothic tracery. Inside, the original floor plan, wood paneling, carved marble mantelpiece, plaster ceilings and paneled doors survive. Davis's drawings for the house are held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The house is valued as a joint work of two leading Romantic-era designers, as one of few Davis commissions remaining in Massachusetts, and as Medford's finest example of Gothic Revival domestic architecture.
Significance in brief: The house is significant as a collaboration between Alexander Jackson Davis and landscape designer Andrew Jackson Downing. It is one of a limited number of surviving Davis commissions in Massachusetts. It is also Medford's best example of Gothic Revival domestic architecture.
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 75000267, listed April 23, 1975. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 129 High St., Medford |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | April 23, 1975 |
| Reference number | 75000267 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architect / builder | Alexander Jackson Davis (architect) and Andrew Jackson Downing (landscape designer) |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | National |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed as a private residence; the interior is generally well preserved, though the original Downing landscape and the Davis-designed furniture are gone. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.42016, -71.11436 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
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 75000267.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q14715633
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.