The Connecticut River Scenic Farm Byway winds its way through the village of Montague Center on Route 63 and Route 47. Opportunities to appreciate the history, culture and beauty of the area exist along the entire length of the byway, however, side trips into the surrounding area are a must. Visit the historic Village Center where the original Town Hall (1858), the Congregational Church (1834) and the Montague Grange Building face the Town Common along with numerous other outstanding examples of Greek Revival architecture located on the Main Street. The Montague Center Historic District was recently listed on the National Historic Register of Places, and boasts some of the finest examples of Greek Revival architecture, commonly regarded as America's first uniquely American architectural style. The influence of Asher Benjamin’s popular pattern books is particularly evident in the house merchant Edward L. Delano built (c1838) on Main Street. While impressive, this house seems in contrast to the largest and most extravagant Greek Revival temple-form house built for the son of Montague’s most wealthy resident in the 1840’s, merchant John Sanderson Ward. The builder relied on Minard Lefever’s more florid Greek Revival design models illustrated in his books The Modern Builder’s Guide (1833) and the Beauties of American Architecture (1835). As is the case along the entire length of the farm byway, however, there are many more examples of less ornate Greek Revival-style dwellings built on Main and Center Street during this period. In addition to their classical facades, most of the large houses of this period were erected at the front of a string of connected back buildings that terminated with substantial barns. The village was laid out with long lots with narrow frontages that had agricultural functions in the back. The simplified version of the Greek Revival architectectural style is far more common along the Connecticut River Scenic Farm Byway, and is certainly more consistent with this predominantly agrarian area.