National Register of Historic Places

Putnam, Otis, House

Worcester, Worcester County, Massachusetts
Listed
March 5, 1980
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
80000565

About this property

The Otis Putnam House is a historic house at 25 Harvard Street in Worcester, Massachusetts. Built in 1887 to a design by Fuller & Delano for a prominent local department store owner, it is a fine local example of Queen Anne architecture executed in brick. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It now houses offices. The Putnam House is located on the west side of Harvard Street, a north–south road paralleling downtown Worcester's Main Street on a rise to the west, southwest of its corner with Dix Street, and adjacent to the Jerome Marble House. It is a 2+1⁄2-story brick building, with a front-facing gable roof and a stone foundation. It is roughly rectangular in plan, with asymmetrical projecting sections to the sides. On its east-facing front facade, a two-story porch is recessed under the gable, with the first-floor section projecting beyond, with a shed roof across part of its width, and a gable above the granite steps. The second-floor porch has turned posts set on shingled piers, with a latticework frieze between them at the top. The main gable is framed in wood and finished in shingles set in a wavy pattern, with a projecting bay at the center with two round-arch windows in the front. First-floor windows are set in segmented-arch openings capped by brick lintels, while second floor windows are in square openings with stone lintels. A band of decorative brickwork acts as a frieze below the roofline. The house was built in 1887 to a design by Fuller & Delano, and is one of the city's finer examples of Queen Anne brickwork. It was built for Otis Putnam, a native of nearby Leicester who worked his way through the ranks to become a leading partner in one of the city's largest department stores. He also served as a director of the local electric company, and of the Worcester and Holden Street Railway Company. National Register of Historic Places listings in northwestern Worcester, Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places listings in Worcester County, Massachusetts

Location

25 Harvard St.
Worcester, Worcester County, Massachusetts
42.26896, -71.80260

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.

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Putnam, Otis, House

This page lists Putnam, Otis, House. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with historic sites, battles and Native heritage plotted, and its full story era by era.
The Land
The historic sites and place names around the location, and how this land was settled and used.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks and old features hidden in the landscape.
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
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
The old books, county histories and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Points of Interest
The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from first peoples to the present day.
First month just $5.99, then $11.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Putnam, Otis, House report
Or see a real report first

Nearby Historic Sites

Marble, Jerome, House
Industrial
0 mi
Goulding, W.H., House
Industrial
0 mi
Copeland, Samuel, House
Industrial
0 mi
Goulding, Henry, House
Industrial
0.1 mi
Riordan, John, Three-Decker
Industrial
0.1 mi

Questions about this property

When was Putnam, Otis, House listed on the National Register?

Putnam, Otis, House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 5, 1980.

What type of historic resource is Putnam, Otis, House?

Putnam, Otis, House is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Putnam, Otis, House?

The period of significance for Putnam, Otis, House is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Putnam, Otis, House?

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 Putnam, Otis, House will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.

More in Worcester County

Historic places, battles, and census history across Worcester County.

Explore WorcesterCounty ›

More historic places in Massachusetts

Browse all historic places in Massachusetts.

View Massachusettshistoric sites ›

Conflict records

Explore 19,000+ military engagements across American history.

Browse US conflicts ›

Massachusetts history

Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.

Massachusettshistory ›

Research the history near this site

An Aubrey US report for an address near Putnam, Otis, House will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.

Research your locationView a free sample report