UXBRIDGE, Mass.- A historic 18th-century property in Uxbridge has been demolished despite its listing on the National Register of Historic Places, ending the physical presence of one of the town’s long-associated colonial-era structures.
The Bazaleel Taft House at 240 South Main Street was demolished on June 22, 2026, following years of vacancy after its closure as a restaurant. The building had remained unused since 2008, when the former “Cocke n Kettle” restaurant ceased operations.
The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983 due to its architectural and historical significance, but it had not been actively preserved in recent years and stood vacant for approximately 18 years prior to demolition.
Built circa 1780–1790, the wood-frame structure was associated with Bazaleel Taft, a prominent local landowner and political figure in early Uxbridge history. The Taft family maintained long-standing influence in the region, with ties to town governance, state politics, and early infrastructure development.
Bazaleel Taft Sr., born in Uxbridge in 1750, served as a captain in the American Revolution after responding to the Lexington Alarm on April 19, 1775. He later represented Uxbridge in the Massachusetts General Court for more than three decades and was selected as a presidential elector in 1817.
The property itself was a 2½-story wood-frame Georgian-style building with a hip roof and symmetrical facades. It was later modified with additions during its conversion into a restaurant in the 1960s.
The house also reflected broader Taft family history in the region, beginning with early settler Daniel Taft and continuing through multiple generations involved in public service and land ownership in the Blackstone Valley area.
Despite its historic designation, the building deteriorated during its long period of vacancy. The demolition removes one of the remaining physical links to the Taft family’s early presence in Uxbridge, though the site remains part of the town’s documented historical record.
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