National Register of Historic Places

Silver Lake District

Harrisville, Cheshire County, New Hampshire
Listed
December 29, 1986
Type
District
Period
Listed
Ref No.
86003100

About this property

The Silver Lake District is a historic district encompassing a summer resort area along the southern section of Silver Lake in Harrisville, New Hampshire. It includes a collection of summer cottages built along or near the shores of the lake between about 1880 and 1903, a period of prosperity in Harrisville and nearby Keene. It is unusual in that most of the owners and occupants of its properties were from nearby towns, and not from further afield, as the populations of the summer colonies of Nelson and Dublin were. The district covers 66 acres (27 ha) from the town line between Harrisville and Nelson to the southern end of the lake, and includes 76 contributing buildings. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. The Silver Lake area was first settled in the mid-18th century, and was predominantly agricultural in use until the arrival of the railroad at Chesham in 1880. Around 1886 Corban Farwell and Wellington Seaver, the major landowners around the southern end of the lake, began selling off lakefront lots, on which vacationers built modest cottages. Of the 37 cottages built before 1903, 35 are still standing. The architecture of most of them is best described as vernacular and Stick style, with siding that is either vertical planking, board-and-batten, or tongue-and-groove. Some houses have bands of decorative cut shingles, and most houses feature porches that wrap around at least two sides, and offer views of the lake or the mountains. Some houses have Gothic-style vergeboard decoration and trim elements. Most of the properties in the district are located on the lake side of East Side Road and West Side Road, dead-end roads which run near the shores of the lake from its southern end. Some houses, which were built on some the first lots to be sold off by Corban Farwell, are located on Old Nelson Road. The original lots for these properties originally ran to the lake, but were subdivided, separating them from the lake.

Location

Harrisville, Cheshire County, New Hampshire
42.95221, -72.13558

Categories

EXPLORATION/SETTLEMENTARCHITECTURE
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
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The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
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Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
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The Community
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Rivers & Rail
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Notable People
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Historical Maps
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Literature
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Nearby Historic Sites

Kendall Cottage
Industrial
0.5 mi
Farwell, Corban C., Homestead
Industrial
0.6 mi
Adams, John, Homestead-Wellscroft
Industrial
0.8 mi
Cheever, George, Farm
Industrial
0.8 mi
Silver Lake Farm
Industrial
0.8 mi

Questions about this property

When was Silver Lake District listed on the National Register?

Silver Lake District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 29, 1986.

What type of historic resource is Silver Lake District?

Silver Lake District is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Silver Lake District?

The period of significance for Silver Lake District is recorded as the listed era.

Can I research the history near Silver Lake District?

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