Community Memorial Hospital
Why it's listed
Community Memorial Hospital at 15 Winthrop Avenue in Ayer, Massachusetts, is a red brick Colonial Revival building on a hilltop lot. It opened in April 1929 to designs by the Fitchburg firm Haynes & Mason. The original two-story block, flanked by one-story wings ending in pedimented pavilions, is trimmed in brownstone and wood cornices. A matching south wing was added around 1957 to increase bed capacity. It was the first hospital building built specifically for Ayer, growing out of the Ayer Hospital Association and the Ayer Private Hospital, and was the lifelong goal of Dr. Bertrand H. Hopkins. A fundraising drive raised $72,500 in about a week, and the hospital served Ayer and six nearby towns. It later became a nursing home and long-term care facility. The building is significant for its role in local health care history and as an intact example of an early 20th century community hospital. It was vacant at the time of nomination, with conversion to assisted living planned for 2004.
Significance in brief: It was the first hospital building constructed specifically to serve Ayer and is an intact example of an early 20th century community hospital reflecting the spread of hospital-based care to rural America. It served Ayer and six neighboring towns, and was supported by local fundraising and volunteers. It is also a locally significant example of Colonial Revival institutional 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 04000423, listed May 14, 2004. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 15 Winthrop Ave., Ayer |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | May 14, 2004 |
| Reference number | 04000423 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1929-1957 |
| Architect / builder | Haynes & Mason, architects |
| Architectural style | Early 20th Century Revivals: Colonial Revival |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Health/Medicine, Social History, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Current function is listed as vacant; the building is being rehabilitated in 2004 for assisted living residences, with a new addition proposed and the original west portico being reconstructed. |
| Acreage | 1.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.56087, -71.58176 (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.
Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.
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 04000423.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5154817
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.