Academy Historic District
About this property
The Academy Historic District is a historic district in the center of Wilbraham, Massachusetts. Its 65 acres (26 ha) encompass the historic center of Wilbraham, as well as the historic central portion of the campus of the Wilbraham & Monson Academy. It includes properties on Mountain Road (roughly the southern boundary of the district), Main Street, and Faculty Street. Wesleyan Academy was founded in 1817 and moved to Wilbraham in 1824; its oldest buildings date to 1825. It merged with Monson Academy in the 20th century to form the present school that occupies the academic premises. The academy was a major center of Methodist teaching in New England, and was a prominent factor in the town's growth. The main historic building of the academy is called the Old Academy, and is a large brick Federalist building designed by Enoch Mudge in 1825. It is a two-story building with a slate roof and a white clapboard belltower. Next to it is Fisk Hall, an 1851 two story building made of brick with sandstone trim; it is topped by a cupola. Binney Hall, built in 1854, is similarly a two-story brick building. The Smith Hall Gymnasium was built in 1896, and has Richardsonian Romanesque details and a hipped slate roof. The Alumni Memorial Chapel stands next to the Gymnasium; it was built in 1867 of red sandstone. In addition to the academy buildings, the district includes a number of civic and residential buildings, including the Old Meetinghouse (built 1793), which was originally designed as a meeting hall, but was converted in 1835 into a residential duplex. Adjacent to the Old Meetinghouse, is the Hearse House, an outbuilding that housed the town's hearses from 1890 to 1920. The district also includes a number of residences built mostly in the middle of the 19th century. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
Location
Categories
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.
Everything a full report reveals about Academy Historic District
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Questions about this property
When was Academy Historic District listed on the National Register?
Academy Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 19, 1979.
What type of historic resource is Academy Historic District?
Academy Historic District is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Academy Historic District?
The period of significance for Academy Historic District is recorded as the listed era.
Can I research the history near Academy Historic District?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Academy Historic District will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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