Alden, Oliver House
613 High St
1765
Architectural Style
Georgian
Significance
Agriculture, Architecture
Use Type
Agricultural, Single Family Dwelling House
Neighborhood
Massachusetts Historical Commission Report
Architectural Significance
This is a centerhall plan Georgian frame vernacular house. It retains its original 2 1/2 story boxy form with wide 3-bay end wall gables. Its 5-bay main facade is symmetrically arranged around the most stylish 18th c. entrance in Bridgewater—the multipanel front door is flanked by fluted pilasters with bolection "Doric" capitals and is surmounted by a 5-pane transom, bolection molding and dentillated cornice.
Historical Significance
This venerable farmhouse was built c. 1765—probably at the time of Oliver Alden's marriage. During the 18th c. High St., between what is now Broad St. (laid out as a turnpike in 1805-06) and Hayward St. was called Prudence St. and was lined with several Alden family houses—the Bridgewater Aldens were descended from John and Priscilla Alden of Plymouth, MA. By the early 19th c. Cromwell Alden, a farmer, owned this property. He lived here until the mid 1870s. In 1879 this house was owned by the Alden estate. Charles Hall, farmer, owned this house during the early 1900s.