Statement of Significance (as of designation - May 16, 2000):
Parker Cleaveland, who resided here fro 1806 to 1858, is nationally significant for his contributions to the field of mineralogy. A professor at nearby Bowdoin College, Cleaveland conducted some of the earliest studies of mineralogy in the United States and, in 1816, published "Elementary Treatise on Mineralogy and Geology," the first volume on American mineral species and localities, thereby earning the title "Father of American Mineralogy." This comprehensive work with its clear, concise mineral descriptions and useful classification system, was the only mineralogy textbook in American colleges for decades and set the standard for subsequent works on the subject