Dowley-Taylor House
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The Dowley-Taylor House is a historic house at 770 Main Street in
Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...
. Built in 1842 to a design by architect Elias Carter, it is one of the best-preserved high-style Greek Revival mansions in the city. 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 1980.


Description and history

The Dowley-Taylor House is set on the north side of Main Street, south of Worcester's downtown business district. It is a large two story rectangular block with a hip roof topped by an oversized cupola with a surrounding porch. Its front facade consists of a full height portico supported by Corinthian columns. The front door is centered on the five-bay facade, surrounded by sidelight and transom windows and topped by an elaborate entablature supported by pilasters. The building corners are pilastered, and the windows of the front are framed by moulded caps. The house originally had a parapete crowned by an eagle, but that was removed at some point. The house was built in 1842 to a design by Worcester architect Elias Carter, and is the best-preserved of a small number of surviving Greek Revival mansions in the city. It was first occupied by Levi Dowley, a leathermaker and banker. After financial reverses, he sold it to armsmaker
Ethan Allen Ethan Allen ( – February 12, 1789) was an American farmer, businessman, land speculator, philosopher, writer, lay theologian, American Revolutionary War patriot, and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of Vermont and for ...
, who moved it to its present location in 1853. It was owned for a time by Frank H. Kelley, who served as mayor of Worcester. In 1882 the house was purchased by Ransom Taylor, a prominent local real estate developer. It remained in Taylor family hands until 1957, when it was sold to
Worcester Junior College Worcester Junior College was a private junior college located in Worcester, Massachusetts. Prior to its closure in 1989, Worcester Junior College offered associate degrees in the fields of liberal arts and sciences, and was accredited by the New ...
, which adapted it for classroom use.


See also

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National Register of Historic Places listings in southwestern Worcester, Massachusetts There are 291 properties and historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Worcester, Massachusetts. Of these, 82 are west of I-190 and the north-south section of I-290 and south of Massachusetts Route 122, and are listed below ...
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National Register of Historic Places listings in Worcester County, Massachusetts __NOTOC__ This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) designated in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The locations of NRHP properties and districts for which the latitude and longitude coordinates are included below, may be ...


References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Houses completed in 1842 Houses in Worcester, Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Worcester, Massachusetts Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Worcester County, Massachusetts