Abraham Hill House
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The Abraham Hill House is an historic First Period house in
Belmont, Massachusetts Belmont is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. It is a western suburb of Boston, Massachusetts, United States; and is part of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, the town's population stood at 27,295 ...
, United States. Probably built in the early 18th century, it is one of the oldest buildings in the town. Its construction history shows changing residential trends over two hundred years of history. The house was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1990.


Description and history

The Abraham Hill House is located northeast of downtown Belmont, on the southeast side of Pleasant Street (
Massachusetts Route 60 Route 60 is a east–west state highway running through the northern suburbs of Boston. Its western terminus is at U.S. Route 20 (US 20) in Waltham and its eastern terminus is at Route 1A and Route 16 in Revere. Route description Route 6 ...
) between its junctions with Prospect Street and Scott Road. It is a -story wood-frame structure, with a gabled roof and clapboarded exterior. It is oriented with a gable end to the street, and its main facade on the side. The facade is three bays wide, with asymmetrical positioning including a slightly off-center entrance. Two brick chimneys rise from the interior through the rear roof face. There are 4 rooms to each floor in the main house. Each room has a fireplace. The kitchen had an extension from the chimney to ovens. On the left side of the house, the rear section extends beyond the side wall, a feature known regionally as a "Beverly jog". A single-story ell extends to the rear (northeast) side of the main block. The house is one of the oldest houses in Belmont, if not the very oldest. Its construction date is claimed by local historians to be 1693, but architectural analysis places its construction later, c. 1725–1750. It was enlarged significantly in the 1790s by Abraham Hill's son James, who was born in the house. Alterations included the conversion of the house from a central chimney plan to a central hall plan. It remained in the Hill family until 1942. The stockade fence was added in the 1960s. The ground floor windows are only 3-4' from the sidewalk. The hand hewn floor boards were about 2' wide of a yellowish orange color after waxing


See also

* National Register of Historic Places listings in Middlesex County, Massachusetts


References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Middlesex County, Massachusetts Belmont, Massachusetts