National Register of Historic Places

Brewster Old King's Highway Historic District

Brewster, Barnstable County, Massachusetts
Listed
February 23, 1996
Type
District
Period
Listed
Ref No.
96000162

About this property

The Brewster Old King's Highway Historic District is a historic district encompassing much of Massachusetts Route 6A and portions of some adjacent roads in Brewster, Massachusetts, which was known as the Old King's Highway during colonial times. The center of Brewster grew around the junction of the Old King's Highway and Harwich Road (now Massachusetts Route 124), with its first church built there in 1700 (the current church is a Greek Revival structure built in 1834), and a nearby burying ground established in 1707. The civic and commercial functions of the town were spread along the Old King's Highway through the 19th and into the early 20th century. This concentration of historic resources extends about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of the main junction, and about 1.2 miles (1.9 km) eastward. Prominent landmarks in the district, in addition to the church, include the Old Town Hall, a richly detailed Queen Anne structure built in 1881; it is located at the junction of the highway with Chatham Street (Massachusetts Route 137). The 1868 Brewster Ladies Library is a fine example of Stick style, and was the first purpose-built library building on Cape Cod. The current Town Hall was built in 1925, and originally served as a school. Two 19th-century school buildings also survive in the district: the No. 2 Schoolhouse, an Italianate two-room building first used as a high school, overlooks Schoolhouse Pond, while the more modest No. 3 Schoolhouse (1850) has been repurposed as a barn. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.

Location

Brewster, Barnstable County, Massachusetts
41.75885, -70.08660

Categories

ARCHITECTURECOMMERCECOMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENTMARITIME HISTORYPOLITICS/GOVERNMENTTRANSPORTATION
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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Overview
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The Land
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Geology
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LiDAR Terrain
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Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
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Historical Maps
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Finds & Access
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Literature
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Spotlight
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Nearby Historic Sites

Stony Brook-Factory Village Historic District
Industrial
1.7 mi
Old Higgins Farm Windmill
Industrial
1.8 mi
Nickerson Mansion
Industrial
2 mi
Dillingham House
Industrial
2.1 mi
Sears, Jacob, Memorial Library
Industrial
3.2 mi

Questions about this property

When was Brewster Old King's Highway Historic District listed on the National Register?

Brewster Old King's Highway Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 23, 1996.

What type of historic resource is Brewster Old King's Highway Historic District?

Brewster Old King's Highway Historic District is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Brewster Old King's Highway Historic District?

The period of significance for Brewster Old King's Highway Historic District is recorded as the listed era.

Can I research the history near Brewster Old King's Highway Historic District?

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