Hopkins, Elisha, House
Why it's listed
Built around 1868 at 237 School Street in Somerville's Winter Hill neighborhood, this three-bay house is a residence on the southeast corner of School and Oakland Streets. It follows an Italianate plan popular in the 1850s and 1860s, with a center gable, round glazed windows in the gable ends, and one-story projecting bays flanking the central entrance. A full-length Colonial Revival porch with turned posts and a plain balustrade runs across the front. Synthetic siding was added in the 1970s, but the massing and setting remain intact. The house is considered important because few center-gable Italianate houses survive in Winter Hill. The area was largely apple orchards belonging to Jonathan Poor until the late nineteenth century, with only a few Italianate and Mansard houses on the east side of School Street. The house was built before 1870 and belonged to a shipmaster named Hopkins. It is listed for its local architectural significance.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is one of the only center-gable Italianate houses remaining in the Winter Hill area. It is important architecturally and retains integrity of location, setting, design, feeling and association. It is recorded under Criterion C at the local level.
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 89001284, listed September 18, 1989. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 237 School St., Somerville |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | September 18, 1989 |
| Reference number | 89001284 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Italianate |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Present use is residential; condition is described as fair/good. Synthetic siding was added around the 1970s. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.39269, -71.09522 (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 89001284.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5361765
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.