Treadwell-Sparks House
Why it's listed
Built in 1838 at the corner of Quincy and Kirkland Streets in Cambridge, this two-story wooden house was designed in a cubical form with austere geometric detail. Wide pilasters without capitals, a frieze and a molded beltcourse divide the flushboarded street elevations beneath a hip roof. Cambridge builder William Saunders constructed it for Daniel Treadwell, an inventor and Harvard professor. Historian Jared Sparks lived there from 1847 until his death and served as Harvard's president from 1849 to 1853. The New Church Theological School owned it from 1889 to 1966, turning and moving it on its lot in 1901. Harvard acquired the property in 1966 and moved the house and its stable, now a garage, about one hundred yards in 1968, keeping the original orientation. The house is recognized for its early, severe interpretation of Regency forms and for its link to Sparks's productive years.
Significance in brief: The house is argued to be one of the finest and most innovative Greek Revival houses in Cambridge, with an early three-bay facade and severe geometric Regency forms, and the earliest and most distinguished of fewer than a dozen broad-pilastered houses there. It was also the main residence of historian Jared Sparks during the most productive years of his life.
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 86002078, listed September 12, 1986. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 21 Kirkland St., Cambridge |
|---|---|
| County | Middlesex County |
| Listed | September 12, 1986 |
| Reference number | 86002078 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | William Saunders (builder) |
| Architectural style | Regency/Greek Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Education, Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Used as a residence; refurbished after the 1968 move as the official residence of the Preacher of the University. Owned by Harvard University. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 42.37684, -71.11497 (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 86002078.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7836583
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.