House at 90 Prospect Street

Elizabeth Boit, co-founder of the Harvard Knitting Mills, was one of the first highly placed female executive in the male-dominated management ranks of textile firms of the turn of the 20th century, and is believed to be the only woman in a top executive position in the United States textile industry in 1923. She pioneered worker conditions improvements, offering factory workers health care, and providing bonuses based on company profits. The compound she built at Chestnut and Prospect Streets, on the summit of Cowdry's Hill, is the only surviving estate of Wakefield's leading business executives.[2]

Boit's three houses were all designed by local architect Harland Perkins. They were set in an estate compound on the summit of Cowdry's Hill that included three residences, formal gardens, a playhouse, and a greenhouse. All three residences, 90 and 88 Prospect Street, and 127 Chestnut Street (1910-1913), were designed in the English Cottage style. The stucco structures have red tile roofs, recessed entries, exposed purlins, and irregular fenestration. This house is 1+1⁄2 stories in height, with its entry set under a cross-gable roof section with a clipped gable. There are recessed porches on either side, supported by heavy columns.[3]

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Wakefield, Massachusetts
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Middlesex County, Massachusetts