Ash Street Historic District, Historic district in Cambridge, US.
The Ash Street Historic District is a residential area in Cambridge containing ten houses located between Brattle Street and Mount Auburn Street, just west of Harvard Square. The buildings display different architectural styles and construction methods from various decades of the 1800s.
Most of the houses were built between 1850 and 1890, showing architectural styles ranging from Greek Revival to Italianate design. A later addition to the district came in 1941 when another house was constructed, introducing a different design direction to the street.
The houses display residential styles that changed across the 1800s, showing how people built their homes as tastes and fashions shifted over time. Each building reflects the choices and values of its era, telling a story about life in the neighborhood during different periods.
The area is easily reached through Harvard Square with just a short walk heading west from there. Wear comfortable shoes, as the neighborhood has some hills and varied sidewalk conditions.
The 1941 house on Ash Street was designed by Philip Johnson while he was still studying at Harvard University. This building brought modernistic design principles to an otherwise traditional neighborhood and stands in stark architectural contrast to the older houses surrounding it.
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