Crowninshield House

Not to be confused with the Crowninshield-Bentley House in Salem, Massachusetts.

Crowninshield House
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district Contributing property
Location	Boston, Massachusetts
Coordinates
Built	1870
Architect	Henry Hobson Richardson
Architectural style	Other, Romanesque
Part of	Back Bay Historic District (#73001948)
NRHP Reference #	72000145
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	February 23, 1972
Designated CP	August 14, 1973

The Crowninshield House is an historic house designed by Henry Hobson Richardson, located at 164 Marlborough Street in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts.

Architecture

Commissioned by Benjamin W. Crowninshield, the house was designed in 1868 and built in 1870 by H.H. Richardson. It is the earliest surviving example of Richardson's private residence work. Unlike many of his later works in the signature Romanesque style that he would develop, this house owes more to the Second Empire style. It is built entirely in brick, and features black brick trims and decorative green and blue tiles.

The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

Benjamin Crowninshield

Benjamin William Crowninshield (1837–1892) was a member of the Boston Brahmin Crowninshield family. He attended Harvard College, graduating in 1858, along with classmates H.H. Richardson and Henry Adams. Adams' Education of Henry Adams (1918) includes descriptions of his friendship with Crowninshield.

Crowninshield studied history, publishing and speaking on various topics, such as yachting and military history. Published works include A History of the First Regiment of Massachusetts Cavalry Volunteers (Boston: Houghton, Mifflin and Co., 1891).

In 1868, Crowninshield commissioned his friend Richardson to design and build the house on Marlborough Street in the newly land-filled Back Bay area of Boston.

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in northern Boston, Massachusetts

Image gallery

• Richardson 164MarlboroughSt 6.JPG
• Richardson 164MarlboroughSt 5.JPG
• Richardson 164MarlboroughSt 4.JPG
• 164MarlboroughSt 2.jpg