Parker, Joseph, House
Why it's listed
This listing covers a Joseph Parker House in Reading, Massachusetts, documented in the records for two separate buildings. The main one, at 107 Grove Street, is a clapboard house built before 1795, probably around 1795, and remodeled or enlarged about 1808. Its massing, small second-floor windows set against the plate, and boxed cornice mark it as vernacular Federal, while the central door enframement with fluted architrave and sidelights was a later Greek Revival alteration. The house appears on an 1795 map as Joseph Parker's, and later owners included the Nichols family and Loea Parker, who died at Fort Independence during the War of 1812. F. Howard Gilson, an early photographer who documented Reading's old trees, owned it in 1875. From 1910 to 1932 it served as a vacation home for city children. The second record, 420 Franklin Street, describes a three-bay First Period farmhouse dated 1711, linked to the Parker family and later to the Red Farm Studio, founded by Ellen Nelson in 1947.
Significance in brief: The Grove Street house is argued to be significant as part of an 18th-century settlement node, for its ties to the Parker and Nichols families, War of 1812 veteran Loea Parker, and photographer F. Howard Gilson, for its use as a summer retreat for urban children, and as a good example of vernacular Federal architecture. The Franklin Street house is described as a relatively intact First Period homestead tied to the Parker family and artist Ellen Nelson.
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 84002781, listed July 19, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 107 Grove St., Reading |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | July 19, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84002781 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Federal vernacular/Greek Revival (107 Grove Street); First Period (420 Franklin Street) |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Community Planning and Development, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Acreage | 2.1 |
| Coordinates | 42.54697, -71.11876 (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 84002781.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6286085
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.