Buildings

Washington Street, Boston (2)

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Another view looking up Washington Street, taken from the corner of Temple Place, around 1906. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

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The scene in 2014:

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This view of Washington Street was taken a couple blocks back from the one in this post, and shows some of the drastic changes in the Downtown Crossing area.  In this area, Washington Street is closed to most traffic, allowing pedestrians easy access to the stores on both sides of the street.  It’s one of the few cases where the “now” photo actually has less traffic than the “then” photo.

Today, Downtown Crossing is still a major shopping district, but almost all of the buildings in the 2014 photo are new – probably the only easily recognizable building in both photos is Old South Meeting House, which is three long blocks down the road.

Washington Street, Boston (1)

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Looking up Washington Street from near Franklin Street, toward Old South Meeting House, around 1906. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

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Washington Street in 2014:

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These two photos were taken just a block away from the ones in this post.  This particular view illustrates some of the changes that Washington Street has seen over the past century.  Long before even the first photo was taken, Washington Street was once the only way in or out of Boston by land (hence, “one if by land, two if by sea,” with the land part referring to passing through here).  However, subsequent landfill in the 19th century expanded Boston’s land area, and allowed for other routes in and out.

Today, this section of Washington Street is closed to most traffic, and is at the center of the Downtown Crossing shopping district.  In that sense, not much has changed – 100 years ago, this area was also a major commercial district, although not many of the buildings survive today.  The most prominent is the Old South Meeting House, which has stood at the corner of Washington and Milk Streets since 1729.  A few other buildings on the right-hand side, both in front of and behind the church, still exist today, but everything in the foreground has significantly changed.

Custom House, Boston

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Boston’s Custom House, around 1900-1906. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

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The building in 2014:

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Although no longer used as a US Customs office, the Custom House still looks much the same as it did when it was completed in 1849, aside from the addition of a 32-story skyscraper on top of it.  When it was built, it was on the waterfront, roughly level with Quincy Market, which was also located along the water.  It was a convenient location, as it facilitated the inspection of ship cargoes.  Today it is several blocks away from Long Wharf, but it continued to be used by Customs for many years.

By the time the first photo was taken, the increase in shipping to Boston necessitated expanding the Custom House, which led to the construction of the Custom House Tower in 1915. At the time, Boston  restricted the height of buildings to 125 feet, but as a federal building it was exempt from these restrictions.  As a result, it was the tallest building in Boston until the completion of the Prudential Tower in 1964.  US Customs left the building in 1986, and it is now a Mariott hotel.

State Street, Boston

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The view looking up State Street from Chatham Street, in 1875. Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.

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The same view, around 1905. Photo courtesy of Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

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State Street in 2014:

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These three views show the progression of high-rise buildings in Boston’s Financial District, with the 1875 photo showing mostly 4-5 story brick buildings, followed by taller buildings in the turn-of-the-century photo, and finally the modern steel and glass skyscrapers in the 2014 photo.  One constant in all of the photos, though, is the Old State House, which predates even the first photo by over 150 years (consider that – in the 1875 photo, the building was closer in time to the present day than to the year it was built).  It’s remarkable to be able to see it in all three photos, though, because the views clearly show the colonial-era building steadily becoming dwarfed by its surroundings.

Another building (possibly the only other one) visible in all three photos is the Western Union Telegraph Company building (the one with the company’s name painted on the side in the photo).  It was brand-new in the 1875 photo, having been built approximately a year earlier, and it stood out among its neighbors.  Today, it’s still there, although extensively modified and barely noticeable, and is probably the shortest building on either side of State Street in this view.

Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market, Boston

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The east face of Faneuil Hall, with Quincy Market to the right, taken in 1875.  Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.

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The same view in 2014:

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Compare with the photos in this post, wheich show Faneuil Hall a little closer and about 20 years after his 1875 photo was taken.  Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market are still there, having been built in 1742 and 825, respectively.  However, the scene is very different in the background.  Boston’s massive City Hall building is just beyond and to the left of Faneuil Hall, with other modern skyscrapers behind it.  This was once the Scollay Square neighborhood of Boston, which was completely demolished in the 1960s to build City Hall and the surrounding buildings, with the neighborhood being renamed Government Center.

Quincy Market, Boston (3)

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Quincy Market, facing west toward Faneuil Hall, sometime in the 1800s.  Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.

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The scene in 2014:

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Another view of Quincy Market, showing the difference between the business-oriented market in the 1800s, and the tourist-oriented scene today.  In this particular 2014 view, it was taken during the Urban Raid, a 5k race and obstacle course that went through the City Hall area of Boston.