East Main Street Historic District
Also known as: See Also:US Post Offices in New York State, 1858-1943 TR; Sun
Why it's listed
East Main Street in Richfield Springs, New York, forms a tree-lined corridor of 19th-century houses, civic buildings and parkland east of the village center. The district has 67 contributing and 25 noncontributing resources, including 31 historic residences, two boarding houses, a church, a theatre, a post office and the village waterworks. The houses date from 1836 to about 1910 and show Italianate, Second Empire, Queen Anne, Shingle, Stick and Chalet designs. Bella Vista, built in 1886 and designed by W. Niver of Fultonville, is the best Shingle style example. Richfield Springs grew as a resort around its mineral springs. Spring Park occupies the site of the Spring House Hotel, which burned in 1897, and holds a rustic bandstand of 1904. The waterworks, begun in 1879, reflect the public works needed for a large summer population. The 1941-1942 post office, built with Public Works Administration funds, is the most recent historic building in the district.
Significance in brief: The district is nominated under Criterion A for social history, as a surviving part of the resort community that grew around the mineral springs in the 19th century. Its houses show Italianate, Second Empire, Queen Anne, Shingle, Stick and Chalet styles. The park, waterworks and post office record the village's public improvements and its later decline as a resort.
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 95001282, listed November 7, 1995. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly, E. Main St. from Church St. to the Richfield Springs reservoirs, Richfield Springs |
|---|---|
| County | Otsego County |
| Listed | November 7, 1995 |
| Reference number | 95001282 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architect / builder | W. Niver of Fultonville (Bella Vista); William B. Ward; Guy Kinne; Louis Simon (post office); Melvin Shaul (theatre) |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival, Italian Villa, Italianate, Queen Anne, Shingle, Stick, Chalet, Colonial Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Social History, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The theatre building is described as currently deteriorated; many houses remain in residential use and the former Methodist church is occupied by another congregation. |
| Acreage | 80 |
| Coordinates | 42.85131, -74.97506 (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 95001282.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5328918
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.