Christ Church
Why it's listed
Christ Church is a wooden Anglican church on Garden Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts, constructed between 1757 and 1761 from designs by Peter Harrison of Newport. A group of wealthy Cambridge merchants funded it with a strict budget of 500 pounds sterling, requiring a wooden building with one tier of windows, no galleries except an organ loft, and a tower with a belfry instead of a steeple. The actual cost came closer to 1,300 pounds, which likely explains why the exterior was never roughcast. The exterior has wide horizontal planking, a square tower and seven arched side windows. Inside, Ionic columns and pilasters, added in the 1820s under architect Isaiah Rogers, give a spacious, delicate character. The congregation, largely loyalist, dispersed during the Revolution, and troops used the church in 1775. The building was later lengthened from sixty to eighty-three feet, redecorated, and restored in the twentieth century. It is valued as an example of Harrison's design skill and as a surviving piece of colonial Cambridge.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents the church as a work of Peter Harrison, described as colonial America's most skilled gentleman-amateur architect. Its plain planked exterior contrasts with a refined interior, and it is one of the surviving landmarks of colonial Cambridge 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 66000140, listed October 15, 1966. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Garden St., Cambridge |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | October 15, 1966 |
| Reference number | 66000140 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1757-61 |
| Architect / builder | Peter Harrison |
| Architectural style | Colonial; early Georgian |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | National |
| National Historic Landmark | Yes, designated October 9, 1960 |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Occupied and in religious use; the form says serious construction problems from the 1853 enlargement were being corrected. Later additions are noted as not contributing to the landmark's significance. |
| Acreage | 0.5 |
| Within district | Cambridge Common Historic District |
| Coordinates | 42.37535, -71.12057 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
Religious properties are listed for their architectural or historical significance, not their religious use. Listing is honorary and does not restrict the congregation's use of the building. The federal rehabilitation credit is generally unavailable unless part of the building is income-producing; some state programmes and preservation grants do cover religious buildings. Federal funding or permits trigger Section 106 review.
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 66000140.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5108740
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.