Lambert House and Fountain

The pre-Civil War house at 128 Chestnut Street was originally the home of Henry and Catherine Lambert, from 1854 to 1900.  Mrs Lambert was a close friend of the sculptor, Anne Whitney, and after Mrs Lambert's death a fountain created by Whitney, Child with Calla Lily Leaves, was installed in the small garden island at the intersection of Chestnut, Highland and Valentine Streets. Read more about the history of the Lambert family, their house, Anne Whitney and the fountain here:    Lambert Article                         

West Newton Hill Preliminary Study Report

The West Newton Hill Preservation Initiative, through a team of volunteers, conducted research for a report which was completed in January 2017. The report was submitted to the Newton Historical Commission and the Massachusetts Historical Commission, and released to the community. The report highlights key developments in the history of West Newton Hill since the 1830's including examples and photographs of distinctive architecture and background on the first families people who settled here, together with maps and charts. This also provides a summary about the rationale for preservation in communities generally.

Click the link below to download and view this document.  

Following detailed field work and research conducted for the Massachusetts Historical Commission in the 1980s, three separate National Register Historic Districts on West Newton Hill were recognized.  These areas are clusters of streets encompassing houses mostly constructed between 1870 and 1930, and representing Italianate, Second Empire, Queen Anne, Victorian, Colonial Revival, Georgian Revival, Craftsman and Tudor Revival architectural styles. One area extends over 35 acres, from Otis St to Valentine St, between Chestnut and Lenox, and includes the Lambert Fountain on Valentine.  The second area includes historic houses on Putnam and Winthrop Streets, and nearby streets. Both of these districts are also briefly summarized on Wikipedia.

A third area, the Day Estate National Register Historic District, includes a group of six homes on Commonwealth Avenue and Dartmouth Street, built in 1929 and 1930 , five of which were considered particularly notable as examples of the Tudor Revival style. In each of these three areas, some historic homes have been demolished.

Being in a National Register Historic District does not provide any tools to prevent demolitions, even if desired by the community, in contrast with being in a Local Historic District, where a local historic commission staffed by community members does have the tools to stop demolitions of architecturally significant buildings and to encourage compatible alterations. They would not apply the same restrictions to less historically significant structures.

The ground work of indexing the architecture of the homes in these NR areas has already been done, and there also other buildings in the neighborhood that are individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In addition, several hundred more homes in West Newton are already documented and can be researched online on the Massachusetts Historical resource inventory, called MACRIS-net.

If your home is in one of these areas, you may find it interesting to read these reports to learn more about the history and architecture of the neighborhood.

Local Historic Districts (LHD) offer the strongest form of protection for the preservation of historic structures. There are over 200 LHDs throughout Massachusetts, the first having been established on Nantucket and Beacon Hill in 1955.

Designating an LHD is a way for a community to promote the preservation and protection of the distinctive exterior architectural features of buildings within a district, while still giving property owners the flexibility to carry out interior renovations and additions or alterations to the those portions of the exterior not open to view from a public street.  Interior features are not affected at all, and exterior features that are excluded from the review process include: routine maintenance, paint color, roof color, landscaping, changes at grade, storm doors and windows, and AC units and small communication antennae. Construction of new homes within an LHD is also subject to a more careful design review than would normally be the case.

The City of Newton has four Local Historic Districts (LHD), which you can see sign-posted as you walk or drive around the city. The first to be established was Newton Upper Falls, in 1976, including almost 200 properties. The Chestnut Hill district was established in 1985 and expanded in 1991, now including 252 properties. Auburndale and Newtonville formed Local Historic Districts in 2002. Newton Highlands is the process of proposing a Local Historic District of about 240 residential and commercial properties.

EXPLANATION FROM THE CITY OF NEWTON

" Local Historic Districts are areas of historic and/or architectural value in which historic buildings and their settings are protected by public review.  A Local Historic District is established and administered by a community to protect the distinctive characteristics of historically important areas, and to encourage new designs that are compatible with the area's setting.  

Local Historic District ordinances are local laws that are adopted by communities under Chapter 40C of the General Laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, enacted in 1960.  40C and local ordinances define how Local Historic Districts operate.  Inclusion in a Local Historic District does not affect use of buildings, but does subject exterior changes to review by a Historic District Commission.  This design review process assures that changes will not detract from the district's historic character.  Historic District Commissions do not necessarily prevent changes or new construction.  They ensure that changes and additions are appropriate, and protect the architectural and historic values of the district.  

A Local Historic District is not intended to be burdensome to property owners, but is established by a community to manage changes and protect historic buildings, landscapes, and character of a district."

Source: City of Newton Web Site

For more information download the following documents:

Massachusetts Historical Commission report on "Establishing Local Historic Districts"