Copeland House
311 South St
1720
Architectural Style
Colonial
Significance
Architecture
Use Type
Single Family Dwelling House
Neighborhood
Massachusetts Historical Commission Report
Architectural Significance
In terms of form, this is one of the most intriguing houses in Bridgewater. An interior inspection might provide a clearer understanding of this house's structural evolution. The mid section, with its 12/8 wood sash windows, is apparently the nucleus and may date to as early as the 1720s. The South St. facing segment resembles an early 19th c. Cape (Center Hall plan, 5 bay main facade) with a c. 1840s secondary entrance (Greek Revival recessed entrance with classicized enframements). To the rear is a c. 1850s 2-story ell with 2/2 wood sash. The roof's configuration combines gable and hip forms. The Crescent St. wall's entrance exhibits the "shadows" of an entrance pediment.
Historical Significance
Built c. 1720-1735 (mid section), this house is mentioned in Miss Crane's "Bridgewater in 1835" as being "at least one hundred years old." Crescent and South Sts. Were laid out c. 1717 (according to J.E. Crane). From the late 18th c. until the early 20th c. this house was owned by a branch of Bridgewater's Copeland family. C.D. Copeland owned the house for most of the 19th c. He was a farmer and active member of the town's Scotland Trinitarian church.