National Register of Historic Places

Aborn, John, House

Cambridge, Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Listed
April 12, 1982
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
82001883

About this property

The John Aborn House is an historic house in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Built in 1846, it is one of west Cambridge's first examples of residential housing with Italianate features. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. The John Aborn House stands in a residential area northwest of Porter Square, on the northeast side of Orchard Street between Blake and Beech Streets. It is a 2+1⁄2-story wood-frame structure, with a side-gable roof and clapboarded exterior. A two-story porch extends across the front, supported by square posts. The gable eaves have decorative brackets, and the ground floor windows on the front are topped by lintels adorned with small brackets. The house was built in 1846, not long after Orchard Street was platted for development. It was one of the first houses with Italianate elements to be built in the city, coming just one year after the style was introduced. The house was built by Joshua Fernald, a local master carpenter, and was located for convenient access to the Fitchburg Railroad depot (now the Porter MBTA station). It originally did not have a large front porch; a two-story porch with Victorian turned posts and balusters was added about 1890 (as seen in 1972 cultural survey photos); the present porch is a subsequent replacement. Frederick Billings House, 45 Orchard Street, also built by Fernald National Register of Historic Places listings in Cambridge, Massachusetts

Location

41 Orchard St.
Cambridge, Middlesex County, Massachusetts
42.39151, -71.12033

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Billings, Frederick, House
Industrial
0 mi
St. James Episcopal Church
Industrial
0 mi
Watson, Abraham, House
Industrial
0.1 mi
John Winthrop Chambers, The
Industrial
0.1 mi
Henderson Carriage Repository
Industrial
0.1 mi

Nearby Battles

Siege of Boston – Cambridge Lines
1775Revolutionary War
1.4 mi

Questions about this property

When was Aborn, John, House listed on the National Register?

Aborn, John, House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 12, 1982.

What type of historic resource is Aborn, John, House?

Aborn, John, House is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Aborn, John, House?

The period of significance for Aborn, John, House is recorded as the industrial era.

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