Gould, Samuel, House
Why it's listed
Built about 1735 by Samuel Gould, this 1½-story gambrel-roofed house at 48 Meriam Street is the only remaining Georgian house of its type in Wakefield. It is five bays wide, with two interior chimneys and clapboard walls. The broad door surround with half-length sidelights probably dates from the 1830s to 1850s, and the first-floor window surrounds have moldings while those above are plain. Later changes include a porch on the north, a mansard-style roof profile on the east and dormers on the south. The Gould family settled south of Crystal Lake before 1700 and farmed the land into the 19th century. The arrival of the steam railroad in 1845 changed the area, Main Street was moved east of the house, and the farmland was divided for development. In the 1880s Dr. Horatio M. Meriam owned the property and planted evergreens and flowers from around the world, labeled with Latin names. The house is still a dwelling.
Significance in brief: The house is described as a well-preserved early 18th-century dwelling and the only remaining 1½-story, Georgian, gambrel-roofed house in Wakefield. It retains integrity of location, design, materials, workmanship, feeling and association. It is considered significant at the local level under Criterion C.
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 89000704, listed July 6, 1989. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 48 Meriam St., Wakefield |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | July 6, 1989 |
| Reference number | 89000704 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Samuel Gould (builder, as stated in the historical significance section); architect listed as NA |
| Architectural style | Georgian |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Present use is dwelling; condition is fair. A garage is noted as noncontributing. |
| Acreage | 1.3 |
| Coordinates | 42.48609, -71.06938 (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 89000704.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7411520
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.