National Register of Historic Places

Charlestown Main Street Historic District

Charlestown, Sullivan County, New Hampshire
Listed
June 9, 1987
Type
District
Period
Listed
Ref No.
87000835

About this property

The Charlestown Main Street Historic District encompasses the historic heart of Charlestown, New Hampshire. It is located along Main Street (New Hampshire Route 12), roughly between Lower Landing Road and Bridge Street, and encapsulates more than two hundred years of the town's history. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. Charlestown, located on the banks of the Connecticut River in southwestern New Hampshire, was chartered as Number Four by the Province of Massachusetts Bay in 1734, and rechartered by the Province of New Hampshire in 1753. Massachusetts built a fort (recreated as a museum in the Fort at Number 4, north of the district) in 1740, which was for some time the northernmost European settlement on the river. Development of Charlestown's center did not begin until 1763, when Main Street was laid out. There are ten buildings in the district which were built before 1800, including a 1772 brick schoolhouse, now a private home, and the c. 1752 Johnson House. Most of the development in central Charlestown took place in the 19th century. A number of buildings which survived a major fire in 1842 where Federal-style buildings designed by local builder Stephen Hassam, including his own house (c. 1800), the Rick's Electric building at 72 Main, and the former Connecticut River Bank building. The latter two are particularly fine examples of Federal style executed in brick. Also attributed to Hassam is the brick South Parish Unitarian Church (1842). Notable buildings of the second half of the 19th century include the Italianate Town Hall (separately listed on the National Register), and St. Luke's Episcopal Church, a wood-frame Gothic Revival structure inspired by the works of Richard Upjohn. The Silsby Free Library was built 1893–94, funded by a bequest from Ithiel Silsby, and built in the Richardsonian Romanesque style to a design by Boston, Massachusetts, architect C. C. McAlpine.

Location

Charlestown, Sullivan County, New Hampshire
43.23671, -72.42364

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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Everything a full report reveals about Charlestown Main Street Historic District

This page lists Charlestown Main 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:

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.
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Nearby Historic Sites

Charlestown Town Hall
Industrial
1 mi
Farwell School
Industrial
5.3 mi
North Charlestown Historic District
Listed
5.4 mi
Langdon Meeting House
Industrial
5.4 mi
Prentiss Bridge
Industrial
6 mi

Nearby Battles

Fort Number Four (Charlestown NH) — King George's War
1746Colonial
0.5 mi

Questions about this property

When was Charlestown Main Street Historic District listed on the National Register?

Charlestown Main Street Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 9, 1987.

What type of historic resource is Charlestown Main Street Historic District?

Charlestown Main Street Historic District is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Charlestown Main Street Historic District?

The period of significance for Charlestown Main Street Historic District is recorded as the listed era.

Can I research the history near Charlestown Main Street Historic District?

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