Canaan Street Historic District
About this property
The Canaan Street Historic District encompasses the historic original town center of Canaan, New Hampshire. It is a basically linear district, running along Canaan Street roughly from Prospect Hill Road in the north to Moss Flower Lane in the south. The town flourished first as a stagecoach stop, and then as a resort colony in the late 19th century. The historic district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. It included 60 contributing buildings. The town of Canaan was established by a land grant in 1761, but Broad Street, its principal road now called Canaan Street, was not laid out until 1788. Because it was on a major north-south stagecoach route, the area developed in the first half of the 19th century as a trading center. The old town hall was built in the 1790s to serve as a church, and was joined by institutional buildings including the 1828 Greek Revival Old North Church and the 1839 Canaan Union Academy (later to become the town library and museum). Several of the houses originally served as taverns, catering to the stagecoach trade. The area declined in economic importance because it was bypassed by the railroad, but was developed as a summer resort community in the second half of the 19th century, rivaling Bethlehem. The historic district is basically linear, running along Canaan Street as it passes just west of Canaan Street Lake. Its northern boundary is Prospect Hill Road, where the Old North Church stands. Built in 1828, the Old North Church is a fine example of early Greek Revival architecture. A cluster of civic buildings is found near the center of the district at Apple Blossom Road, where the old town hall stands, with the former Academy (now the Canaan Historical Museum) across the street. Most of the district's buildings are residences that exhibit either Federal or Greek Revival styling, reflective of the village's early period of development. National Register of Historic Places listings in Grafton County, New Hampshire
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 Canaan Street Historic District
This page lists Canaan Street Historic District. 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:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Questions about this property
When was Canaan Street Historic District listed on the National Register?
Canaan Street Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 6, 1973.
What type of historic resource is Canaan Street Historic District?
Canaan Street Historic District is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Canaan Street Historic District?
The period of significance for Canaan Street Historic District is recorded as the listed era.
Can I research the history near Canaan Street 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 Canaan Street Historic District will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Grafton County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Grafton County.
Explore GraftonCounty ›More historic places in New Hampshire
Browse all historic places in New Hampshire.
View New Hampshirehistoric sites ›New Hampshire history
Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.
New Hampshirehistory ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near Canaan Street Historic District will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.