Gale, George, House
Why it's listed
Built around the mid-1850s on Clinton Street in Cambridge's Mid-Cambridge neighborhood, once known as Dana Hill, this large wood frame double house has a center gable, ornate Italianate brackets and round-arched windows beneath the gable. A brick fire wall divides it into two mirror-image homes, each with a side hall plan and plaster cornices and medallions on the first floor. Later changes included bay windows, side additions, an extended front porch and conversion to a rooming house in the 1930s. The house was built by the Gale family, prosperous lumber dealers. George F. Gale and his son George W. Gale helped modernize the local lumber trade, notably by bringing a railroad spur into their yard. The house reflects the family's middle-class business standing and Cambridge's rapid growth in the third quarter of the nineteenth century. It is recognized for its architecture and for these associations. It is now vacant and damaged, but it still conveys its nineteenth-century character.
Significance in brief: The house is a locally important example of a mid-nineteenth-century double house with Italianate detailing, a distinctive residential type in Cambridge. It is also associated with the Gale family, lumber dealers who contributed to the growth of Cambridge's lumber industry and who reflect the middle-class business community of the Dana Hill neighborhood.
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 87002543, listed February 10, 1988. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 14--16 Clinton St., Cambridge |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | February 10, 1988 |
| Reference number | 87002543 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Center Gable Italianate |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Industry, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Vacant, in poor condition with fire and vandal damage to the front porch, siding, doors, windows and front interiors; most interior mantles and one stair newel post are missing. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.36817, -71.10630 (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.
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 87002543.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5539589
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.