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INVENTORY FORM B CONTINUATION SHEET LEXINGTON 2180 MASSACHUSETTS AVE. MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION Area(s) Form No. 220 MORRISSEY BOULEVARD,BOSTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02125 0 2251 ❑ Recommended for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. If checked,you must attach a completed National Register Criteria Statement form. Use as much space as necessary to complete the following entries, allowing text to flow onto additional continuation sheets. ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION: Describe architectural features. Evaluate the characteristics of this building in terms of other buildings within the community. 2180 Massachusetts Avenue is set on a hillside well above and back from Massachusetts Avenue and shares a driveway with 2160-2170 Massachusetts Avenue, which occupies a separate parcel. A paved driveway begins at the front left corner of #2160-2170 and crosses the site diagonally to the center of the lot at#2180. The house at 2180 Massachusetts Avenue is set at the back right corner of its long, narrow lot, with a very deep setback from the road and a minimal setback on the right side. Because of its distance from the street and a thick border of trees and shrubs along the roadway, visibility of the building was extremely limited during this study. Site observations were substantially augmented with Bing bird's eye views and assessor's records. The building is a long, rambling assemblage with multiple appendages and additions of varied sizes, shapes, and ages. The main block, which faces the left side of the property, appears to be a rectangular structure with a side gambrel roof(the right side elevation of which faces Mass. Avenue)and a cross-gambrel wing at the far left side. A square, 2-story tower element with a hip roof projects from the middle of this block and contains the main entrance. The main block rises 1 '/2 stories, with a fully exposed basement level, containing a garage, at the right side elevation. A brick paved walkway leads from the driveway and parking area to the front door; the yard is otherwise maintained chiefly in lawn with plantings of large shrubs and trees scattered throughout. Walls are clad with wood shingles and trimmed with a pronounced fascia with crown molding. Windows are typically double- hung with wood trim. The building appears to rise 1 '/2 stories to the right of the entrance tower and 2 '/2 stories to the left of the tower. The right side gambrel end contains one wide garage door at the base, a shallow rectangular bay with three conjoined 1/1 windows centered on the first floor, and a decorative window composition centered in the half story, which is composed of a large horizontal window flanked by two lower vertical windows, all with geometrically gridded sash. On the front fagade of the building, the central tower has arched openings supported by square Tuscan posts on its first floor. The second floor flares slightly at its base and holds three contiguous windows on its front face and a single window facing the street, all with geometrically gridded sash. The gambrel to the right of the tower has a shed-roofed dormer with paired double hung windows. On the segment of the main block to the left of the entrance tower, a variety of single and paired windows and shed-roofed dormers are evident. A 1 '/2 story, cross-gambrel wing at the back of the main block contains a large bay window at the first floor, with tall paired windows on the visible faces. Smaller windows are paired in the half story above. Assessor's records indicate a construction date of 1910 for this building. The present house is a handsome building in an historically-inspired design, but only the back portion (not visible from the public way) is possible to date that early. The larger, front portion of the building appears to be completely modern (post-1950) construction. HISTORICAL NARRATIVE Discuss the history of the building. Explain its associations with local(or state)history. Include uses of the building, and the role(s) the owners/occupants played within the community. Continuation sheet I