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Federal Square Historic District (Springfield, Massachusetts)

Historic districts in Hampden County, MassachusettsHistoric districts on the National Register of Historic Places in MassachusettsNRHP infobox with nocatNational Register of Historic Places in Springfield, MassachusettsSpringfield, Massachusetts
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SpringfieldMA FederalSquare2
SpringfieldMA FederalSquare2

The Federal Square Historic District is a historic district encompassing a portion of the former Springfield Armory in Springfield, Massachusetts. Located across Federal Street from the main Armory grounds, Federal Square was the site of some of armory's early facilities, including a Continental Army magazine during the American Revolutionary War. It was also the site of a brief clash in Shays' Rebellion, in which four rebels were killed. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2019. It is currently being developed by Springfield Technical Community College as a technology business center.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Federal Square Historic District (Springfield, Massachusetts) (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Federal Square Historic District (Springfield, Massachusetts)
Federal Street, Springfield

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Latitude Longitude
N 42.109166666667 ° E -72.577777777778 °
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Federal Street

Federal Street
01101 Springfield
Massachusetts, United States
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Springfield Armory
Springfield Armory

The Springfield Armory, more formally known as the United States Armory and Arsenal at Springfield located in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts, was the primary center for the manufacture of United States military firearms from 1777 until its closing in 1968. It was the first federal armory and one of the first factories in the United States dedicated to the manufacture of weapons. The site is preserved as the Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Western Massachusetts' only unit of the national park system. It features the world's largest collection of historic American firearms.Famous first as the United States' primary arsenal during the American Revolutionary War, and then as the scene of a confrontation during Shays' Rebellion, the Springfield Armory in the 19th and 20th centuries became the site of numerous technological innovations of global importance, including interchangeable parts, the assembly line style of mass production, and modern business practices, such as hourly wages. The facility would play a decisive role in the American Civil War, producing most of the weaponry used by Union troops which, in sum, outpaced Confederate firearm production by a ratio of 32 to 1. American historian Merritt Roe Smith has posited that advancements in machine manufacturing which allowed the facility to increase production capacity by more than 25 fold, from 9,601 rifles in 1860 to 276,200 in 1864, served as a precursor to the mass production of the Second Industrial Revolution and 20th century assembly line production. The numerous firearm models produced at the Springfield Armory from 1794 to 1968 are referred to as "Springfield muskets and rifles".

Masonic Temple (Springfield, Massachusetts)
Masonic Temple (Springfield, Massachusetts)

The Masonic Temple is an historic former Masonic building at 339–341 State Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. The four story Neo-Classical building was built in 1923 to serve as the headquarters of the local Masonic lodge. It occupies a prominent position opposite the Springfield Armory, just outside the downtown area. The building, which is no longer owned by the Masons, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.The first Masonic lodge was established in Springfield in 1817. Between then and the early 1920s, Masonic organizations in the city met in a variety of places, including the town hall, and facilities in an insurance company building. The various lodges banded together to build their first dedicated space in 1893 at the corner of State and Main Streets. In the 1920s a fund drive was organized to construct a new facility. The firm of Edward McClintock and Charles Craig, both active Masons, was hired to design the building, which was built by A.E. Stephens beginning in October 1923, and formally dedicated in June 1924.Unlike the lodge built in 1893 (in which the ground floor contained retail space), the entire building was used for lodge purposes. The main entrance opened into a two-story foyer with marble floors and staircase, and was decorated with Greek Doric columns. The first floor housed two Blue Lodge facilities, one with space for 240 people the other for 450. Each of these rooms had inlaid cork floors and limestone walls, and house a pipe organ. The balance of the first floor included a reception area, and a meeting room for the lodge trustees. A mezzanine area had an office for the blue lodge secretary and a fireproof vault.The second floor housed a large space devoted to York Rite activities. The large space accommodated 500 people and was, like the first floor chambers, floored in inlaid cork, with limestone walls and a pipe organ. The chamber also had an arcade supported by pillars. Smaller offices and storage rooms line the remainder of this level, and there was again a mezzanine area with more storage. The third floor had the largest space in the building. With a capacity of 1,500, including 300 in a balcony, this chamber was used for Scottish Rite ceremonies, and featured a large and elaborate stage flanked by the pipes of an organ.On November 10, 1983, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was acquired in 2007 by the Archdiocese of New England of the International Communion of the Holy Christian Orthodox Church, which made substantial renovations, converting some of the space into an art gallery, and repurposing others for religious use. The archdiocese had financial difficulties, and the property was sold at a foreclosure auction to its mortgage holder in January 2012.

Upper Worthington Historic District
Upper Worthington Historic District

The Upper Worthington Historic District of Springfield, Massachusetts encompasses a collection of visually cohesive residential apartment blocks that represent one of the largest residential developments in the city dating to the first three decades of the 20th century. It is centered on a portion of Worthington Street, a major east-west road in the city, between Armory Street and Summit Street, and includes 33 buildings on those three streets as well as Federal and Taylor Streets, near their junctions with either Worthington or Federal. Most of the contributing buildings are four story brick buildings with Georgian detailing and stone trim. The district was first listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, including 28 buildings; the district was expanded in 1992 to add the five buildings on Taylor Street.The district is located on the northern side of the plateau that also houses the Springfield Armory. In the mid-19th century this area was developed with summer estates, which eventually succumbed to development pressures for higher density housing late in the 19th century. The Upper Worthington area was originally the estate of Horace Kibbe, which the firm of Gagnier & Angers offered to buy in 1908. Gagnier & Angers was a partnership of two French Canadian immigrants, who were one of the city's major real estate development and construction firms in the early 20th century. When the estate was finally partitioned in 1912, they purchased the largest part of it, and proceeded to build out the area over the next twenty years. Most of the residential blocks in the district were built either by that firm, or by one established by Albert Gagnier and Larry Angers, sons of its principals. The development was the largest of its type in the city at the time, and preserves a distinctive streetscape from the period.

McKnight District
McKnight District

The McKnight District is a predominantly residential neighborhood northeast of downtown Springfield, Massachusetts. The area represents a planned residential development covering several hundred acres, which was built in the mid to late 19th century. The architects of the development were John and William McKnight, who, in addition to developing and enforcing construction guidelines in the area, built and landscaped many of the properties. The area was largely built by 1910, and there has been little new construction in the area since. Most of the houses built in the area were constructed in most of the architectural styles that were popular between 1880 and 1990, although there is a predominance of the Queen Anne style. The McKnights began to develop the area, which had previously been mainly farmland, in 1870 with the purchase of a 22 acres (8.9 ha) parcel on which they and a partner built their own homes. They proceeded over the following years to acquire additional parcels of land in the area, plat out roads, and either build houses themselves, or sell plots to other builders. They enforced some uniformity in the area through the use of deed restrictions, which required uniform setback requirements, banned fencing, and required a minimum cost of construction (the latter to prevent the building of inexpensive tenement-style housing).The neighborhood is roughly defined by the railroad tracks on the north and the Bay Street to the south. On the west it is roughly bounded by Armory and Magazine Streets, and on the east by Monmouth, Clifford, Bay, and Marion Streets. A portion of the neighborhood, encompassing some 130 acres (53 ha) and 350 homes, was designated a historic district and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. This was expanded in 1986 to 250 acres (100 ha) and 884 properties, encompassing virtually the entirety of the McKnight's development.