Sharon House
Why it's listed
Sharon House, at 403 Main Street in Winchester, Massachusetts, is a two-and-a-half-story Greek Revival house built around 1835. Its gable roof runs parallel to the street and has short returns, the windows use six-over-six sash, and the trabeated entrance sits slightly left of center. The house is covered in feathered clapboards and sits right at the sidewalk. A two-stage ell at the rear is set at about thirty degrees to the main block, matching an angle in the property line. That ell may have been a shoe shop, possibly one of those a local historian attributed to Calvin Richardson, and the main house may originally have been attached to it. The lot was once part of the Black Horse Tavern property. Mary Ann Sharon bought the house in 1846, and it stayed in her family until 1940. It was listed for its link to the shoe industry, which employed many Winchester households, with shoe shops attached to dozens of houses in the 1830s. Few such structures survive.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is a rare surviving structure tied to Winchester's shoe industry, which dominated the town's economy in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The rear ell may be one of the shoe shops recorded by a local historian. It is described as one of the last traces of a once-thriving local industry.
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 89000613, listed July 5, 1989. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 403 Main St., Winchester |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | July 5, 1989 |
| Reference number | 89000613 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Industry |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Present use is a dwelling; condition is described as very good. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 42.44825, -71.13403 (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 89000613.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7490097
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.