CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · Places & Architecture

John Wade House

building in Massachusetts, United States

Architectural plans, a scale model, maps and brass measuring instruments
Places and architectureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 6, 2026
Entity authorityQ6262629
Source-derived summary

The John Wade House is a historic house located in Medford, Massachusetts. It is locally significant as one of only two surviving early Cape style houses in the city.

Description and history

The 1+1⁄2-story, timber-framed house has a side gable roof, a large central chimney, and a solid granite foundation. The main facade is five bays wide, with a center entrance flanked by sidelight windows and pilasters. An ell and sunporch extend to the rear of the original main block. The house was built around 1784 by John Wade, a tanner. A later owner added the Greek Revival entrance surround

The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 18, 1975. It is sometimes referred to locally as the "Pierce Tavern", although it was never used as such, and probably stood next door to a tavern.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “John Wade House” as building in Massachusetts, United States. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around John, Wade and House.

Editorial reviewMost useful as a place-based finding aid connecting the present description to earlier jurisdictions, maps and built evidence. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1784, 1975—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1790. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with John, Wade and House providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “John Wade House”, the useful work is to connect “building in Massachusetts, United States” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 6, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q6262629. Authority coordinates are 42.421, -71.122. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1784 and 1975.

Critical limits

Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.

Best used for
  • Historic place names
  • Jurisdictional context
  • Routes into maps and plans
Verify next

Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “John Wade House”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow John Wade House primary sources, John Wade House archive and John research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “John Wade House”?
  2. What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
  3. Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from John Wade House” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.