The Old Shipbuilder's Historic District is a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...

Duxbury, Massachusetts Duxbury (alternative older spelling: "Duxborough") is a historic seaside town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. A suburb located on the South Shore (Massachusetts), South Shore approximately to t ...

. The district includes both sides of Washington Street extending from South Duxbury (also known as Hall's Corner) to Powder Point Avenue, including several side streets off of Washington and a small portion of St. George Street and Powder Point Avenue. The district was added to 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 1986. In 1986, the district included 143 buildings deemed to contribute to the historic character of the area.

Historic significance

The district was selected for inclusion in the National Register because it embodies the distinctive characteristics of Duxbury, Massachusetts during the community's heyday as a center of shipbuilding and maritime commerce. Within the district are scores of houses which are well-preserved examples of early 19th century architecture. The great majority of the structures are of the

Federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

style and were constructed between 1800 and 1820. There are also some examples of

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

and

Victorian architecture Victorian architecture is a series of architectural revival styles in the mid-to-late 19th century. ''Victorian'' refers to the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), called the Victorian era, during which period the styles known as Victorian we ...

. Washington Street, which makes up the bulk of the district, runs two miles along the shore of Duxbury Bay from Hall's Corner to the

Bluefish River The bluefish (''Pomatomus saltatrix'') is the only extant species of the family Pomatomidae. It is a marine pelagic fish found around the world in temperate and subtropical waters, except for the northern Pacific Ocean. Bluefish are known as ta ...

and slightly beyond. First laid out in 1798, the street was, at the time, a controversial scheme concocted by several up-and-coming shipbuilders. These men, including Ezra Weston I,

Ezra Weston II Ezra Weston II (November 30, 1772 – August 15, 1842), also known as King Caesar, was a prominent shipbuilder and merchant who operated a large maritime industry based in Duxbury and Boston, Massachusetts. His father, Ezra Weston I, began small ...

, Seth Sprague and Joshua Winsor, were among the first in the community to take advantage of the post-

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

economic boom and each built substantial fleets of fishing schooners. Their new wealth commanded attention and respect in the community, however they met with opposition from the bulk of residents when they proposed the construction of a north-south avenue along the shore. Prior to 1798, Duxbury's shore was only accessible by crude cart paths. In order for maritime commerce to thrive, the shipbuilders required an avenue running along the water which would allow convenient placement of shipyards, warehouses, stores, wharves, and boarding houses. Although the proposal caused uproar at Duxbury Town Meetings for several years, even ending up in court with the shipbuilders suing the Town for refusing to construct the avenue, the project, including a wooden drawbridge over the Bluefish River, was eventually completed in 1803.Patrick Browne, ''King Caesar of Duxbury: Exploring the World of Ezra Weston, Shipbuilder and Merchant,''(Duxbury: Duxbury Rural and Historical Society, 2006) pp. 30-36 Immediately after its construction, sea captains, shipwrights and merchants began building attractive homes on Washington Street. The shipyards and wharves are now gone, but the houses remain and collectively provide a sense of the character of early 19th century Duxbury. The avenue that at first caused so much consternation is now one of Duxbury most treasured historic resources.

Contributing properties

The Nathaniel Winsor, Jr. House, built 1807

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Historic districts in Plymouth County, Massachusetts Duxbury, Massachusetts Georgian architecture in Massachusetts Greek Revival architecture in Massachusetts Federal architecture in Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Plymouth County, Massachusetts Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts

Historic significance

Contributing properties

See also

References