Architecture Archives - Page 161 of 202

Union Station, Worcester, Mass

February 9, 2018September 26, 2016 by Derek Strahan

The Union Station in Worcester, around 1911-1920. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

Union Station in 2016:

Although Worcester’s Union Station looks largely the same now as it did over a century ago, the building has undergone dramatic changes in between. It was built in 1911, when the railroad tracks through downtown Worcester were raised above street level, requiring the replacement of the original 1875 Union Station, located just east of here. Although owned by the New York Central Railroad through their Boston & Albany subsidiary, the station served all of the railroads in Worcester, including the Providence & Worcester and the Boston & Maine. This new building was designed by the firm of Watson & Huckel, and its Beaux Arts architecture was very different from the Romanesque style of its predecessor, reflecting a major shift in architectural tastes from the late 19th to the early 20th centuries.

Although the twin towers of the building were its most iconic feature, the original ones lasted barely 15 years, and had to be removed in 1926 because of damaged caused by vibration from passing trains. The station, without the towers, remained in use for nearly 50 years, but by the mid-20th century passenger rail travel was in decline, and in 1972 it finally closed.

For more than 35 years, the station sat abandoned and decaying. Over time, the panes of glass in the skylight above the main concourse fell out, and for many years the interior was completely exposed to the elements. However, through decades of neglect the exterior remained structurally sound, and after several years of restoration work, the station reopened in 2000, complete with replicas of the towers that had been missing for nearly 75 years. Today, the restored building is a prominent Worcester landmark on the National Register of Historic Places, and from this angle is virtually indistinguishable from its original appearance.

Worcester Common, Worcester, Mass (2)

February 9, 2018September 25, 2016 by Derek Strahan

Another view of the Worcester Common, taken looking west from the corner of Church and Front Streets, around 1906. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The Common in 2016:

Taken from the northeast corner of the Common, on the other end of Church Street from an earlier post, this view shows the Soldiers’ Monument in the center, with City Hall to the left and Front Street to the right. The monument is the oldest feature in the first photo; it was dedicated in 1874 in honor of Worcester’s fallen soldiers and sailors of the Civil War, and was designed by prominent sculptor Randolph Rogers.

Along with the monument, several other buildings remain from the first photo, including the 1898 City Hall. On the far right, partially hidden by trees, are two 19th century commercial buildings. Both were designed by Fuller & Delano, a Worcester-based firm that was responsible for many other significant buildings in the city. The tall red brick building is the Chase Building, which was built in 1886 and, although the top floors were later altered, it is still standing. To the right of it, at the corner of Commercial Street, is the Ransom C. Taylor Block, built around 1897.

Today, the only particularly obvious change to this scene is the Worcester Plaza building in the distance. Originally built as the Worcester County National Bank Tower, it was completed in 1974, and is tied for the record of the tallest building in the city.

Bancroft Hotel, Worcester, Mass

February 9, 2018September 25, 2016 by Derek Strahan

The Bancroft Hotel, at the corner of Franklin and Portland Streets in Worcester, around 1912-1920. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The building in 2016:

The Bancroft Hotel opened in 1913 as the city’s grandest hotel, at a time when Worcester was a prosperous industrial city. Originally planned as a 225-room hotel, the 9-story building was expanded to 320 by the time it was completed. It was designed by the Buffalo-based architectural firm of Esenwein & Johnson, and reflects the Classical Revival style that was often seen in early 20th century grand hotels.

In 1926, the building was expanded in the back along Portland Street, which is visible in the distance of the present photo. This brought the hotel up to 500 rooms, and remained as Worcester’s premier hotel well into the middle of the century. However, as was the case in cities across the northeast by the 1960s, the population was in decline, and interstate highways shifted travelers away from downtown Worcester. In 1964, the hotel closed, but the historic building was preserved, and renovated into apartments. Today, it has 255 housing units, and it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Worcester Common, Worcester, Mass

February 9, 2018September 25, 2016 by Derek Strahan

The Worcester Common, seen facing west from the corner of Franklin and Church Streets, around 1914-1920. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The Common in 2016:

Today, Worcester is the second-largest city in New England, and the Common has been at the center of the city ever since it was a small colonial settlement in the 17th century. Set aside in 1669, more than 50 years before Worcester was formally incorporated as a town, the Common was originally used as a training ground for the militia, burial ground, and the site of the meetinghouse. It was once much larger, but as the city has grown up around it, this common land has steadily shrunk to its current dimensions, and at one point in the 19th century even had railroad tracks running across it.

The first photo was taken shortly after the completion of several prominent buildings along the Common, which are still standing today. These buildings, designed in the popular Classical Revival style of the turn of the 20th century, include the 1913 Bancroft Hotel on the left, the 1915 Park Building to the right of it, and the 1898 City Hall, which is mostly hidden by trees in the distance on the right. Along with the Common itself, all three of these buildings are now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Cathedral of Saint Paul, Worcester, Mass

February 9, 2018September 24, 2016 by Derek Strahan

The Cathedral of Saint Paul, on Chatham Street in Worcester, around 1908. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The building in 2016:

Although now a cathedral, when the first photo was taken this building was still a Roman Catholic parish church. The first services had been held in the church in 1869, while it was still under construction. It was completed in 1874, with prominent Worcester architect Elbridge Boyden as its designer. Boyden had previously designed Worcester’s landmark Mechanics Hall, although its Italianate architecture is very different from the Gothic Revival style of this church. The only major change to the exterior of the church was the addition of the tower on the right side of the building, which was built in 1889 based on Boyden’s original designs.

Very little has changed in this view since the first photo was taken, although the role of the church has changed somewhat. In 1950, it became a cathedral, and since then it has been the mother church of the Diocese of Worcester. Because of its historical and architectural significance, it is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Pleasant Street, Worcester, Mass

September 24, 2016 by Derek Strahan

Looking west on Pleasant Street from Main Street in Worcester, around 1895. Image from Picturesque Worcester (1895).

Pleasant Street in 2016:

Although these two photos were taken over 120 years apart, remarkably little has changed along the north side of Pleasant Street since the late 19th century. All of the buildings on the left (south) side were demolished by the 1960s to build the current Worcester Plaza tower, but the right side of the street features a mix of Victorian architecture. Starting on the far right in the foreground is the Odd Fellows Hall, a commercial block that was built in 1880, with upper floors that were rented by the Odd Fellows for many years. Just beyond it is Lothrop’s Opera House, which opened in 1891. Despite its very plain exterior, it has an elegant interior, and although now vacant it is the oldest surviving theater in the city. Beyond the theater are three brick Victorian buildings, the first of which is the Rice Block, built in the 1870s. The next one, the Lamb Block, was built in 1888, originally with five stories as seen in the first photo. The top two floors have since been removed, but otherwise the building is still standing. Finally, on the other side of the Lamb Block is the Luther-Baker Block, also built in 1888.

The buildings further in the distance in the first photo are now gone, but the remaining buildings form a significant unbroken row of 19th century buildings extending west from Main Street. As such, they are part of the Lower Pleasant Street Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places. However, the future is somewhat in doubt for Lothrop’s Opera House. Its first floor storefronts remain in use, but the theater itself has been vacant for the past 10 years, and has recently been listed by Preservation Worcester as one of the city’s ten Most Endangered Structures.