Court Square Historic District (Springfield, Massachusetts)
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Court Square Historic District
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Court Square
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| Location | Springfield, Massachusetts |
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| Coordinates | 42°6′2″N 72°35′22″W / 42.10056°N 72.58944°WCoordinates: 42°6′2″N 72°35′22″W / 42.10056°N 72.58944°W |
| Built | 1812 |
| Architect | Newman, Frederick S.; Pell, F. Livington & Corbett, Harvey W. |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival, Romanesque, Federal |
| NRHP Reference # | |
| Added to NRHP | May 2, 1974 |
Court Square in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, is a park and historic district in the heart of Springfield's urban Metro Center neighborhood. Court Square is the City of Springfield's only topographical constant since its founding in 1636. It is bounded by Court Street, Main Street, State Street, East Columbus Avenue, and features Elm Street and a scenic pedestrian-only walkway from the courthouse toward Springfield's historic Old First Church.
Springfield's Old First Church has been located in Court Square since the 17th century. It was the twentieth parish formed in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and was gathered in 1637, the year after Springfield was founded. The first meetinghouse was erected just east of this site in 1645. The current Old First Church (b. 1819) is the fourth building on this site, built by a Northampton architect, Isaac Damon. The rooster weathervane on the steeple was crafted by a Coppersmith in London, England, and brought to this country in 1750. Here inventor Thomas Blanchard and abolitionist John Brown worshipped; Daniel Webster spoke; and Jenny Lind sang.
In 1902, the year of the city's golden jubilee, $100,000 was raised in public donations to fund a project extending Court Square to the Connecticut River, spurred by a donation of $10,000 by the estate of the late Tilly Haynes, one of Springfield's most active citizens. In the late 1950s, Haynes' contribution was undermined when Court Square was separated from the Connecticut River by the construction of the elevated Interstate 91, and a 1,754 car parking lot beneath it.
The ornate, gothic stone Court House – now the juvenile court house – to the left of the church, was designed by renowned architect H.H. Richardson and built in 1909. To the right of the church, the Springfield Municipal Group was erected in 1911-13, and dedicated by United States President William Howard Taft in December 1913. In his dedication speech, President Taft praised the Springfield Municipal Group as "one of the most distinctive civic centers in the United States - and indeed, the world." The Municipal Group features a 300 ft. tall Italianate Campanile, which until the early 1970s, was the tallest building in Springfield (as per moratorium on skyscrapers in Springfield by the Massachusetts State Legislature.)
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