House at 10 Arlington Street
Why it's listed
Built around 1885 on the south side of Arlington Street, a small one-way street in East Somerville, this clapboard house shows the shift from Italianate to Queen Anne design. It has a gable roof, two and a half stories and a side-hall plan, a form builders favored in the Italianate mode during the 1870s and 1880s. Paired cornice brackets and hood moldings over the windows come from the Italianate style. Patterned wood shingles, sturdy turned porch posts and a rising sun motif in the porch gable reflect the Queen Anne style. The house has had no major alterations, has no outbuildings and is in excellent condition. It was listed for its architecture, as a fine local example of popular late nineteenth-century styles with well-preserved details. It also represents the last major type of single-family house built in East Somerville. The architect is unknown, and the building's original name is not recorded.
Significance in brief: The house is a well-preserved example of a transitional Italianate/Queen Anne residence, with details from both styles. It also represents the last major type of single-family house built in East Somerville. It meets 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 89001230, listed September 18, 1989. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 10 Arlington St., Somerville |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | September 18, 1989 |
| Reference number | 89001230 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Queen Anne (transitional bracketed Italianate/Queen Anne) |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Present use is residence; condition listed as excellent, with no major alterations and not moved. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.38582, -71.08187 (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 89001230.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5913864
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.