Adams, Elwood, Store
Also known as: Adams, Elwood, Hardware Store
Why it's listed
Elwood Adams Hardware Store occupies a brick commercial block at 156 Main Street in Worcester. It was built about 1831 as a two-and-one-half-storey building and raised to four storeys around 1865, when the facade appears to have been re-faced in pressed brick. The six-bay front is divided by a central pier into two three-bay sections. The ground floor has two storefronts, used as one store, framed by trabeated granite and iron posts. Upper windows have granite lintels and sills, and a wooden cornice with modillion brackets crowns the roof line. The site has served hardware trade since 1782, when Daniel Waldo Sr. opened a store and built the city's first brick building there. Waldo's son took over in 1791, and Henry W. Miller, an apprentice from 1816, gained full ownership in 1831. Miller sold the business in 1886 to Elwood Adams and a partner. The business took its present name after 1891, and it is described as Worcester's oldest business.
Significance in brief: The building occupies a site of long-standing commercial importance, where Daniel Waldo Sr. opened a hardware store in 1782 and built the city's first brick building. The store is described as Worcester's oldest business. The block also retains its 1865 remodeling with granite storefronts and a bracketed cornice.
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 80000584, listed March 5, 1980. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 156 Main St., Worcester |
|---|---|
| County | Worcester County |
| Listed | March 5, 1980 |
| Reference number | 80000584 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Architect unknown; original owner Henry W. Miller |
| Architectural style | Vernacular 19th-century commercial |
| Areas of significance | Commerce |
| Level of significance | State, Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still in commercial use as a hardware store, the same use as the original. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 42.26837, -71.80075 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
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 80000584.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5368316
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.