The John Eliot Historic District encompasses what was the historic early village center of
Natick, Massachusetts
Natick ( ) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is near the center of the MetroWest region of Massachusetts, with a population of 37,006 at the 2020 census. west of Boston, Natick is part of the Greater Boston area. ...
. Now the heart of the village of
South Natick, it now exhibits a diversity of architecture from the 18th to early 20th centuries, laid out along historic 17th-century colonial routes. It 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 1983.
Description and history
The South Natick village center is located in southeastern Natick, formed by the junction of Eliot Street (
Massachusetts Route 16
Route 16 is a east–west state highway in Massachusetts. It begins in the west at an intersection with Route 12 and Route 193 in Webster, just north of the Connecticut state border. It runs in a generally southwest-northeast routing through ...
) with Union and Pleasant Streets. It is located just north of a bend in the
Charles River
The Charles River ( Massachusett: ''Quinobequin)'' (sometimes called the River Charles or simply the Charles) is an river in eastern Massachusetts. It flows northeast from Hopkinton to Boston along a highly meandering route, that doubles b ...
, and has a documented history of both colonial and prehistoric settlement. The roadways probably predate 1651, likely serving as Native American trails. In that year, missionary
John Eliot established a settlement of
Praying Indian
Praying Indian is a 17th-century term referring to Native Americans of New England, New York, Ontario, and Quebec who converted to Christianity either voluntarily or involuntarily. Many groups are referred to by the term, but it is more commonly ...
s, the first of its kind, on this site. The present bridge across the Charles is located where an early footbridge was built, and the South Natick Dam is at the site of what was once a natural falls and
fishing weir
A fishing weir, fish weir, fishgarth or kiddle is an obstruction placed in tidal waters, or wholly or partially across a river, to direct the passage of, or trap fish. A weir may be used to trap marine fish in the intertidal zone as the tide reced ...
. The Native settlement, originally with about 180 individuals, had shrunk by 1797 to just 20. The town, incorporated in 1781, was then dominated by white settlers, its center relocated to a more geographically central site. The first dam in the village was built in 1752, and the area now occupied by a town park on the banks of the river was an industrial site, with a fulling mill and sawmill.
The historic district is essentially X-shaped, radiating away from the central junction on the four roadways. Its center is dominated by the Federal-style John Eliot Church (1828), and the Gothic former John Eliot Congregational Church (1862), and the Renaissance Bacon Library, built in 1880 to a design by Robert G. Shaw. The library is built partly over the grounds of the colonial-era Indian burying ground, one of the places of particular archaeological significance in the district. The village also includes the homes of two important 19th-century writers: one of
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Elisabeth Beecher Stowe (; June 14, 1811 – July 1, 1896) was an American author and abolitionist. She came from the religious Beecher family and became best known for her novel ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' (1852), which depicts the harsh ...
, and
another (a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
) of
Horatio Alger
Horatio Alger Jr. (; January 13, 1832 – July 18, 1899) was an American author who wrote young adult novels about impoverished boys and their rise from humble backgrounds to lives of middle-class security and comfort through good works. His wri ...
.
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See also
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References
{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Historic districts in Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Buildings and structures in Natick, Massachusetts
National Register of Historic Places in Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts