Kirkland Place Historic District
The pin is a point inside the NPS boundary polygon, not a surveyed location.
Why it's listed
Kirkland Place is a quiet cul-de-sac of seven houses close to Harvard University in Mid-Cambridge. The street was platted in the mid-1850s by local architect and builder Isaac Cutler, who designed four Bracketed Italianate houses there. The earliest house, a Greek Revival dwelling built by John Ware in 1839 for his daughters, was moved back on its lot to make room for Cutler's work. The best-known building is the Loring-Pierce House of 1856, an early Mansard-style design by amateur architect Henry Greenough and the only survivor of four Mansard houses he designed in Cambridge. Early owners included a judge and a mathematics professor, though most were not connected with Harvard. A small brick house of 1921 is the only later addition and is not intrusive because of its size and setback. Sheltered from busy Kirkland Street, the street keeps its mid-nineteenth-century residential character and is the only intact enclave surviving from Professors' Row.
Significance in brief: The district is described as the most architecturally distinguished street in the Shady Hill area and the only intact enclave surviving from "Professors' Row." It has six mid-19th-century houses in Bracketed Italianate, Mansard and Greek Revival styles. One of them, the Loring-Pierce House, is an early Mansard design by Henry Greenough. The form finds the district significant for mid-19th-century residential architecture (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 86001683, listed May 19, 1986. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Kirkland Pl., Cambridge |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | May 19, 1986 |
| Reference number | 86001683 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1839-1857 |
| Architect / builder | Isaac Cutler (builder/architect of four houses); Henry Greenough (architect, 4 Kirkland Place); John Ware (built 14 Kirkland Place, 1839); Ernest R. Seaverns (builder, 11 Kirkland Place, 1921) |
| Architectural style | Mid-19th-century residential styles: Bracketed Italianate, Mansard, Greek Revival; one Neo-Georgian house (1921) |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition is described as good to excellent; all houses are in private residential use. |
| Acreage | 2.4 |
| Coordinates | 42.37804, -71.11305 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
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 86001683.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6415742
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.