House at 88 Prospect Street
Why it's listed
This house at 88 Prospect Street in Wakefield, Massachusetts, was built about 1913 as a single-family dwelling in the English Cottage Style. Local architect Harland Perkins designed it as a 1½-story stucco house under a tiled hip roof, with wide eaves on exposed purlins. The symmetrical facade has a center entrance beneath a cross gable with a jerkin head roof, flanked by recessed porches on heavy columns. It is one of three architect-designed houses in a row behind a fieldstone embankment, built after 1910 for Elizabeth Boit as a family compound that once included a landscaped court, greenhouses and a playhouse. Boit co-founded the Harvard Knitting Mills, which employed hundreds of Wakefield residents, and she also did civic work for the Wakefield Home for Aged Women. The houses are described as the last manufacturers' estates in town and the only ones remaining. The house is judged a good example of its style, with little alteration and good condition.
Significance in brief: It is part of a unique three-house residential compound, with 90 Prospect Street and 127 Chestnut Street, designed for Elizabeth Boit and her family. Together the houses show the range of detailing the English Cottage Style allowed. Boit was a co-founder of the Harvard Knitting Mills and one of Wakefield's last manufacturer-estate builders.
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 89000737, listed July 6, 1989. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 88 Prospect St., Wakefield |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | July 6, 1989 |
| Reference number | 89000737 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Harland O. Perkins (architect) |
| Architectural style | English Cottage Style |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed in good condition with no major alterations; used as a dwelling, with a garage, tennis court and cottage as outbuildings. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.50390, -71.08554 (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 89000737.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q1631386
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.