Historic Districts

The Sandwich Historical Commission laid out 22 inventory areas. An inventory area is a group of historic resources—like a neighborhood or a downtown block—that are documented together because they share a common history or architectural style. While a house may have its own historic record, an inventory area looks at the “big picture” of how these places relate to one another.

Within Sandwich’s inventory areas, the Sandwich Historical Commission documented 815 individual historic properties. Additionally, the commission proposed three National Register Historic Districts which were approved by the Department of the Interior’s National Park Service: Jarvesville, Town Hall Square and Spring Hill.

Inventory Areas vs. Historic Districts: What’s the difference?

Inventory Area: This is a research tool. It is a formal record used to document a cluster of significant buildings or landscapes. Being in an inventory area means the location has been identified as historically important. Inventory areas are used in the online database known as MACRIS (the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System). Each inventory area is also assigned a code. Sandwich’s all begin with “SDW” followed by a letter—for example, SDW.A represents Sandwich Center Village.

Historic District: This is an official status. Most historic districts start as inventory areas. Once the research is officially approved by the appropriate local, state or federal agency the area is designated as a “District.” A local historic district includes those formally approved by town voters or regionally by the state, such as the Old King’s Highway Regional Historic District (OKHRHD) which was approved by voters statewide and is now a state law. The OKHRHD includes all land north of the center line of Route 6, making it the largest regional historic district in the country. The OKHRHD encompasses all but four of Sandwich’s 22 inventory areas.

Historic districts are a frontline safeguard for both the town’s unique history and the individual historic properties within Sandwich, which in turn are essential aspects of the town’s reputation, economic vitality, and community character.

Visit MACRIS Website

Inventory Areas

*Old King’s Highway Regional Historic District

Code	Inventory Area Name	Located in the OKHRHD*
SDW.A	Sandwich Center Village	Yes
SDW.B	Sandwich Center – East	Yes
SDW.C	Jarvesville (Local)	Yes
SDW.D	Main Street – Charles Street Area	Yes
SDW.E	Route 6A – Sandwich Village Bypass Area	Yes
SDW.F	Shawme Road Area	Yes
SDW.G	Route 6A – West Area	Yes
SDW.H	Town Neck	Yes
SDW.I	Main Street – Route 130 Area	Yes
SDW.J	Forestdale	No
SDW.K	South Sandwich	No
SDW.L	Spring Hill	Yes
SDW.M	Route 6A Area	Yes
SDW.N	Route 6A East – Scorton Marsh	Yes
SDW.O	Old County Road Area	Yes
SDW.P	Crow Farm	Yes
SDW.Q	Sandwich Fish Hatchery	Yes
SDW.R	Old King’s Highway Regional Historic District	Yes
SDW.S	Town Hall Square Historic District (Local)	No
SDW.T	Camp Edwards – Cantonment Blocks 12 and 13	Yes
SDW.U	Otis Air Force Base – BOMARC Missile Facility	No
SDW.W	Jarvesville Historic District (National Register)	Yes
SDW.X	Town Hall Square Historic District (National Register)	Yes
SDW.Y	Spring Hill Historic District (National Register)	Yes
SDW.Z	Cape Cod Canal	Yes

The map below outlines the inventory areas in blue, marks the contributing properties of the National Register districts in red, and the other historic properties in green.