Church Street Historic District
Why it's listed
Church Street Historic District is a residential neighborhood just north of the center of Richfield Springs, in Otsego County, New York. Built up between about 1822 and 1940, it consists mostly of two-story wood-frame houses in styles ranging from Greek Revival and Italianate to Queen Anne and Colonial Revival, many with their original carriage barns. The district also holds two churches, a cemetery, a former hotel and bath house, and a machine shop. Most houses date from the 1870s and 80s, when the village flourished as a summer resort around its sulphur springs, and were homes to middle-class professionals and business owners. Some buildings were part of the resort itself, including a boarding house and the Terrace Hotel. The Presbyterian church was linked to the McCormick family, whose summer estate lay just outside the district. The cemetery, dating to 1822, holds thirteen Revolutionary War soldiers. The Universalist church later served as a synagogue from 1929 to 1971.
Significance in brief: The district documents the village's growth as a summer resort and spa town, especially in the 1870s and 80s, through its houses, two churches, a cemetery, a former hotel and bath house, and a shop. It also reflects ties to the McCormick family and to a Jewish congregation and resort hotel, and it illustrates popular 19th and early 20th century architectural styles.
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 97000532, listed June 4, 1997. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Church, Sylvan, Gould, and Warren Sts., Richfield Springs |
|---|---|
| County | Otsego County |
| Listed | June 4, 1997 |
| Reference number | 97000532 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architect / builder | Conrad Chase (c1900 alteration of 26 Church Street); Totten and Rogers, Washington D.C. (Waiontha Cottage); L.S. Chase and L. Edwards (local builders of individual houses) |
| Architectural style | Mid-19th Century; Late Victorian; Late 19th & 20th Century Revivals (Greek Revival, Gothic, Italianate, Stick, Queen Anne, Craftsman, Colonial Revival) |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Social History, Architecture, Black |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Current functions remain domestic (single dwellings) and religious; the district contains 78 contributing and 12 noncontributing resources. |
| Acreage | 37 |
| Coordinates | 42.85624, -74.98326 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
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 97000532.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5116706
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.