Historical Commission

Overview

The Lexington Historical Commission (LHC) was established to preserve and develop the historical and archeological assets of the town. The Commission maintains an inventory of buildings, areas, and sites of architectural and/or historical importance in Lexington. It collects reference information and can assist those seeking National Register Nominations for their buildings or neighborhoods. The Historical Commission administers the demolition bylaw.

Members must have professional qualifications in architecture, history or historical preservation with a sincere interest in the field, and a majority of the Commission shall be residents of Lexington.

View the Commission Charge.

Submit a Historical Commission Application for Formal Hearing. Applications are heard through the public hearing process, which happens at the monthly Historical Commission meetings. Submitted applications for each monthly meeting are available to the public for viewing through our ViewPoint Cloud System.

Our Town

The Town of Lexington is rich in cultural resources. Its role in the Revolutionary War has created a stewardship responsibility of its historical sites that extends to the nation at large; its later role in commercial expansion due to the arrival of the railroad created a building boom of late 19th and early 20th century housing stock that continues to distinguish the Town. Structures of the recent past — Moon Hill, Five Fields and the Peacock Farm enclaves throughout Town, among others — enhance Lexington's diverse architectural heritage.

Lexington has received national and state recognition of its historic resources; four properties or areas have been designated as National Historic Landmarks by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior:

The Battle Green
Buckman Tavern
Hancock-Clarke House
Minuteman National Historical Park

Thirteen additional properties are individually listed on the National and State Registers of Historic Places, in addition to the Town's listed National Register Historic Districts:

Lexington Green Historic District
Buckman Tavern Historic District
Sanderson House-Munroe Tavern Historic District

The Metropolitan State Hospital Multiple Property National Register listing, shared with the towns of Belmont and Waltham, also contains a number of significant buildings. In addition, approximately 2,000 properties are protected through inclusion within one or another of the Town-established local historic districts:

Battle Green
East Village
Hancock-Clarke
Munroe Tavern

The Lexington Historical Commission was created "for the preservation, protection and development of the historical or archeological resources" of the Town. Since the 1970s the LHC has documented over 1,400 historic resources located throughout Lexington. To ensure that these historically and architecturally significant structures are preserved, the LHC administers the Town's Demolition Delay Bylaw. The LHC also endeavors to educate citizens of the breadth and importance of Lexington's cultural heritage.

To view a list of preservationists in MA please refer to the Preservation Massachusetts website. (The Town of Lexington does not make any recommendations for services).