---

Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings

	GORE PLACE Massachusetts
Middlesex County, Gore Street, Waltham. Gore Place

This mansion, a fine example of Federal-period architecture, was the home of Christopher Gore, seventh Governor of Massachusetts and national statesman. Born in 1758 in Boston, Gore graduated from Harvard College, and served in the Army during the War for Independence. He became an outstanding lawyer. In 1796 President Washington appointed him commissioner to England, under the terms of Jay's Treaty. During the next 8 years Gore settled many U.S. merchants' spoliation claims against the British. In 1801 he returned briefly home and planned his mansion, which he built in 1805. While living there he served as Governor of Massachusetts and U.S. Senator. He died in 1827.

The three-story mansion, built of pink brick laid in Flemish bond, consists of a central portion and two flanking wings. A sandstone terrace fronting the two entrance doors was designed to accommodate horsemen and coaches. Inside the mansion on the first floor, marble floors lead to a central State Reception Hall, a semielliptical room having curved doors and thresholds. Immediately beyond the hall is an oval dining room. The left wing contains billiard and music rooms, and the right wing contains servants' quarters. A staircase spirals upward from the central portion and makes a complete circle on the third floor. The second floor includes rooms for entertaining guests, and the third floor consists of bedrooms, Gore's study, and guestrooms. Of the original 400 acres on the estate, 76 are still intact. The estate, maintained and owned by the Gore Place Society, is open to the public from April through November.

NHL Designation: 12/30/70