Niles, Louville V., House
Why it's listed
This Queen Anne house at 97 Munroe Street in Somerville's Prospect Hill neighborhood dates to 1890. Its clapboard and shingle walls and its asymmetrical facade include front and canted gable-roofed bays, a side oriel, a conical finial-capped roof, a tall masonry chimney and an integral porch with spindlework. It is considered the best detailed example of its style in the Prospect Hill area and remains well preserved, with no major alterations recorded. Prospect Hill was farmland until the mid-19th century but by the 1880s had become a fashionable address for prominent residents, including local businessmen and Boston commuters. This house was one of the last single-family homes built in that boom. It was apparently built on speculation by Louville Niles, a Faneuil Hall provisions seller who lived nearby at 45 Walnut Street and built two houses on his large parcel in 1890. Banker Edward Tead lived here throughout the 1890s. The house was listed for its architectural value on a local level.
Significance in brief: The house is a well conserved example of Somerville's most popular late Victorian style and is described as the best detailed Queen Anne example in the Prospect Hill area. It represents the city's late-19th-century boom in residential construction. It also reflects Prospect Hill's development as a neighborhood of businessmen and professionals.
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 89001276, listed September 18, 1989. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 97 Munroe St., Somerville |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | September 18, 1989 |
| Reference number | 89001276 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Architect unknown; apparently built on speculation by businessman-developer Louville Niles |
| Architectural style | Queen Anne |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition described as good, with no major alterations and not moved; used as a residence. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.38315, -71.09502 (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 89001276.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6689890
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.