Ames Building - Boston, MA
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NorStar
N 42° 21.534 W 071° 03.496
19T E 330497 N 4691677
The 13 story Ames Building, claimed by the guide for Massachusetts to be Boston's first skyscraper, is now dwarfed by the 40-plus floor buildings around it.
Waymark Code: WM7JF8
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 10/31/2009
Views: 11
On Court Street, where Washington Street intersects, is a 13 story building that is the Ames Building.
The guide for Massachusetts has the following about this building:
42. The Ames Building, corner of Washington St., Boston's first skyscraper, 13 stories high, was erected in 1891 from plans made by Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge, successors of Richardson. It is among the rar instances of skillful adaptation of the Richardsonian Romanesque to commercial purposes.
- American Guide Series: Massachusetts - A Guide to Its Places and People, Pl 157.
Since 1937, when the book was published, the buildings surrounding this one have only become taller. The only building shorter is the Old State House nearby. Immediately across the street is the PNY Mellon Building, which has 41 stories.
In 1974, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The building was empty for eight years before it was purchased in 2007 by Normandy Real Estate Partners. It is expected to be open again in the fall of 2009 as an upscale hotel with a restaurant.
Source:
Wikipedia (Ames Building):
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