Lock Replacement in Springfield, MA

Replacing locks in Springfield's Victorian houses

McKnight was laid out in 1881 as a planned residential neighborhood, and Forest Park has about 600 Victorian houses, a housing stock This Old House magazine singled out in 2011. Statewide, the Census Bureau's 2024 survey counts about 30 percent of homes as built in 1939 or earlier, so old doors are common.

On an original Victorian door, replacement usually takes one of two routes:

• Like for like. A new mortise lock sized to the existing pocket keeps the door uncut. Photograph the door edge with a ruler beside the faceplate so the case size and backset can be matched.
• Conversion. Switching to a cylindrical lockset and a deadbolt means boring new holes and filling the old pocket, a permanent change to the door.

Post-war doors in Sixteen Acres

Sixteen Acres is the city's largest and most recently developed neighborhood, and much of its post-war suburban housing stands there. Knob, lever and deadbolt sets of that kind are usually made to fit standard bored holes, so a worn lock can often be swapped for a sturdier deadbolt or a new handle set without changing the door. If a lock still works and the only worry is who has keys, rekeying handles that without new hardware.

Historic district rules

Springfield has local historic districts in McKnight, Forest Park Heights, Maple Hill, Lower Maple, Ridgewood and Colony Hills, among other areas. Under M.G.L. c. 40C, § 6, a change affecting the exterior architectural features of a building in such a district first needs a certificate of appropriateness, non-applicability or hardship from the commission. Section 5 treats the type and style of doors as one of those features when they can be seen from a public street, way, park or body of water.

If a replacement would change a street-facing door or put visibly different hardware on it, ask Springfield Historical Commission staff before ordering parts. This is general information, not legal advice.

Photos that help

Send photos of both sides of the lock and the door edge, name the neighborhood, and say whether the house is in a local historic district. The service is outlined at lock replacement; the Springfield page has the wider district list.