Boston Manufacturing Company Housing
Why it's listed
Along River Street in Waltham, a long two-story rowhouse block at numbers 380-410 recalls the era when the Boston Manufacturing Company housed its own workers. Built around 1881-1886 during the company's 1880s expansion, the wood-frame building rises from a full basement to a gable roof. It is divided into four-bay segments with paired entries and paired stove chimneys. The western end has bracketed hoods over the doors and permastone siding, while the eastern end has open porches with turned posts and vinyl clapboards. Windows hold 2/2 wood sash. The block stands between the company's main mills and its bleachery, where the company had been building housing since the 1820s. Rowhouses of this kind are uncommon, and most of the surrounding housing has lost its recognizable form. The block descends from the Long Block that stood by Waltham Common from 1816 until the late 1880s. Only one similar block, dated 1889, survives at Lawton Place. The building remains in residential use and in good condition.
Significance in brief: The block is an uncommon, clearly recognizable form of company workers' housing from the Boston Manufacturing Company's 1880s expansion. It reinforces River Street's 19th-century character as the corridor linking the main mills and the bleachery. It is part of Waltham's notable collection of workers' housing and descends from the earlier Long Block on Waltham Common.
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 89001534, listed September 28, 1989. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 380--410 River St., Waltham |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | September 28, 1989 |
| Reference number | 89001534 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Boston Manufacturing Company (builder/owner); architect unknown |
| Architectural style | Late Italianate vernacular |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Industry, Community Planning and Development, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Present use is residential; condition is good, with artificial siding added in the 1970s. |
| Acreage | 0.7 |
| Coordinates | 42.37382, -71.23134 (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 89001534.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4947973
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.