Merrill's Wharf Historic District - New Bedford, MA
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nomadwillie
N 41° 38.018 W 070° 55.257
19T E 339998 N 4610882
Merrill's Wharf Historic District is a historic district on MacArthur Drive in New Bedford, Massachusetts.
The district was built in 1837 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.
Waymark Code: WM5VDY
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 02/16/2009
Views: 5
The Merrill's Wharf Historic District comprises less than one acre along the New Bedford waterfront and includes the Steamship Authority Pier, the Coal Pocket Pier and the unaltered portion of Merrill's Wharf and the Merrill's Wharf Building. Built during the first half of the 19th century during New Bedford's heyday as a whaling center, the district is significant as the only remaining unaltered portion of New Bedford's waterfront. Captain Edward Merrill purchased the waterfront property from the Rotch family in 1837, and it remained in the Merrill family until 1905
The Steamship Authority Pier was built in 1838 and was the debarking point for boats to Massachusetts' coastal islands for more than 100 years. In 1844, Merrill began constructing an earth-filled stone wharf intended for mooring, safely loading, outfitting, maintaining and repairing vessels. Originally 826 feet long, Merrill's Wharf was the largest of seven new wharves built in New Bedford between 1841 and 1849. Merrill's Wharf Building, which originally served as a "counting house" or office, was constructed at the head of the wharf in 1847 and 1848. Made of dressed-stone, the three-and-one-half story, rectangular loft building was built at a cost of just over $3,800. The ground level served as a warehouse; the second floor had four suites of "counting rooms" (offices) for whaling merchants; the third floor housed a sail loft; and the uppermost story was a rigging loft. The Coal Pocket Pier was originally built in the 1850s for Captain Merrill's business. It was later known as the Lumber Wharf and the School Street Wharf, then used as an unloading site for coal for the utility company, which is when it became known by its present name. The Merrill family retained the property until 1905. The Merrill's Wharf Building burned in 1926, but was restored. It burned again in the 1970s and was rehabilitated. Despite alterations during the 1970 rehabilitation, its character-defining exterior was preserved. The building survives in this condition at the head of what is now the principal wharf for the city's commercial fishing fleet.
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