1880s

North Main Street from Pleasant Street, Concord, New Hampshire

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Looking north on North Main Street from the corner of Pleasant Street in Concord, New Hampshire, around 1874-1885. Image courtesy of the New York Public Library.

The scene in 2022:

As these two photos show, much of downtown Concord has retained its historic architecture, with a number of buildings here that date back to the mid-19th century. Some have been altered over the years, but overall most of the buildings from the first photo are still standing here around 150 years later.

Starting in the foreground on the right side of the street is Moore’s Block at 4-12 North Main Street. This was built sometime around 1860, although over the years it has been altered almost beyond recognition. The main façade has been almost completely rebuilt, and today the only clue to its original appearance in this scene is the central window on the second floor, which is still topped by its granite lintel.

Beyond this building is the three-story Currier Block, which was also probably built in the 1860s, and the four-story Statesman Building, which was built around 1866-1867. The latter was originally the offices of the New Hampshire Statesman newspaper. Both buildings are still standing, and are still easily recognizable from their 19th century appearance.

On the far side of the Statesman Building is the corner of Depot Street, and then on the on the other side of the street was Bailey’s Block, which was built in 1874. Later known as Smith’s Block, it stood here until it was destroyed by a fire in 1960, and it was replaced by a one-story commercial building that now stands on the site.

Further in the distance in the first photo, with the tall windows on the upper floors, was Phenix Hall. This was an important city landmark in the second half of the 19th century, and its large auditorium served as a venue for many political gatherings, speeches, and other events. Perhaps the most notable visitor here was Abraham Lincoln, who delivered a speech here on March 1, 1860, several days after his famous Cooper Union speech in New York City. At the time, Lincoln was still a relatively obscure midwestern politician, but his speaking tour through the northeast helped to establish him as a major contender for the 1860 election.

The original Phenix Hall was destroyed by a fire in 1893, but true to its name it was soon rebuilt as the New Phenix Hall. Like its predecessor, it continued to be used as an event venue for many years, with prominent guests such as Theodore Roosevelt, who spoke here during his 1912 presidential campaign. The building was damaged by yet another fire in 1956, and was underutilized for many years during the second half of the 20th century. However, it is still standing, and is the subject of an ongoing restoration project.

On the other side of Phenix Hall, in the distant center of the first photo, is the three-story Phenix Hotel, which was built in 1857. It is difficult to tell now, but there are portions of this building that are still standing. As shown in the first photo, it originally had three stories and a flat roof, but it was later altered with the addition of a fourth story that was topped by a Mansard roof. This roof was eventually removed in 1947, and then seven years later all of the upper floors were removed, leaving only the one-story structure that stands today.

Further in the distance, the buildings become less discernable from this vantage point. However, there are a number of 19th century buildings that still stand today, including perhaps most notably the Eagle Hotel, which had been a favorite for New Hampshire politicians for many years.

Overall, the street itself could hardly be any different, with the horse-drawn carts on a rutted dirt road giving way to the cars that now pass through here on US Routes 3 and 202. However, most of the buildings from the first photo are still standing in some form or another, and the scene is still easily recognizable from the first photo. Because of this level of preservation, this section of North Main Street is now part of the Downtown Concord Historic District, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.

Eagle Hotel, Concord, New Hampshire (2)

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The Eagle Hotel on North Main Street in Concord, around the 1860s-1880s. Image courtesy of the New York Public Library.

The scene in 2022:

As explained in more detail in the previous post, the Eagle Hotel was the leading hotel in Concord during the 19th century. It opened in 1852 on the site of the earlier Eagle Coffee House, which had burned in 1851, and it remained in business for over a hundred years. Because of its location across the street from the State House, it played an important role in state politics. Many legislators stayed here when the General Court was in session, and politicians would often gather here for meetings.

Several presidents visited the hotel, including Concord resident Franklin Pierce, who lived in the hotel for several months between his election to the presidency and his inauguration in Washington. Presidents Rutherford B. Hayes and Benjamin Harrison also stopped at the hotel during visits to Concord, as did Richard Nixon on two occasions in 1954 and 1959, when he was serving as vice president.

The first photo was probably taken in either the 1860s or 1870s, and it shows the original exterior appearance of the hotel. However, the building underwent major changes in 1890. It included interior renovations, such as the installation of an elevator and a central heating plant, and it also included exterior work. The original gable roof was removed, and it was replaced by a fifth story with a flat roof. The porches on the front of the building were also removed at some point during the 19th century, although this apparently happened before the roof, because there are other photos that show the building with no porches but with the original roof.

The hotel ultimately closed in 1961, but it is still standing as one of a number of historic 19th century commercial buildings here on North Main Street. Other surviving buildings in this scene include Stickney’s Old Block at 120-132 North Main Street. This was built in 1851, replacing an earlier building that had been destroyed in the same fire as the Eagle Coffee House. A portion of the building closest to the Eagle Hotel was demolished in 1885 to build the existing New Hampshire Savings Bank building, but aside from this the remaining sections of the older building are still standing. On the other side of the Eagle Hotel is the Merchants Exchange Block, which was also built after the 1851 fire. As was the case with Stickney’s Old Block, a portion of it was later demolished, but the part visible in this scene is still here. All of these buildings, including the Eagle Hotel, are now part of the Downtown Concord Historic District, which was added to the National Register in 2000.

Custom House, New Bedford, Massachusetts

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The New Bedford Custom House at the corner of William Street and North 2nd Street in 1886. Image courtesy of the New Bedford Free Public Library, Gilbert D. Kingman Photograph Collection.

The scene in 2022:

During the first half of the 19th century, New Bedford was a major whaling port. It grew prosperous from the industry, leading to the construction of many historic buildings that still stand today. Among the most architecturally significant of these is the Custom House, shown here in these two photos. The building was designed by noted architect Robert Mills, and it was completed in 1836. Although relatively small in size, the building is a good example of Greek Revival architecture, which was a popular style for public buildings of this era.

The Custom House played an important role during New Bedford’s heyday. It was here that whaling captains, along with those of other incoming merchant vessels, would register their cargoes with customs officials. It was also here that sailors could obtain protection certificates. At the time, British warships would often stop American vessels and force sailors into the Royal Navy. These certificates could be presented as proof of American citizenship, which would, in theory, serve as a deterrent to Royal Navy ships that were searching for sailors.

This building served as the main offices for the District of New Bedford, which was responsible not only for the port of New Bedford, but also for the nearby ports of Fairhaven, Rochester (modern-day Mattapoisett and Marion), Wareham, Dartmouth, and Westport. In short, this district covered the communities along the northeastern shore of Buzzards Bay. By the mid 19th century, this was one of 11 customs districts in Massachusetts, some of which were centered around major seaports such as Boston, Salem, and New Bedford. However, there were also customs districts that were much smaller, including Fall River, Plymouth, and Edgartown.

In general, the more important the district was, the larger the number of customs officials appointed to it. For example, by the 1850s the District of Boston and Charlestown employed over 175 men. At the top of the hierarchy was the collector, and he was assisted by a variety of clerks, measurers, inspectors, appraisers, and other officials. However, by contrast the districts of Marblehead, Gloucester, Nantucket, and Edgartown were each staffed by just a single inspector.

Compared to these two extremes, New Bedford was somewhere in the middle. When this building first opened in 1836 it had a collector, a deputy collector, a clerk, an inspector/boarding officer, and an inspector/gauger/weigher. Each of the other five ports also had either one or two inspectors assigned to it, and there was also a revenue cutter, the McLane, that was assigned to the district. Here at the New Bedford custom house, the building was open six days a week, from 9:00 a.m. to noon, and then from 2:00-4:00 p.m. It was closed on Sundays, and also on July 4.

At the time, the collectors of each district earned a percentage of all import duties that were collected, along with a percentage of the fines that were imposed. This gave the collector an incentive to do his job well, and it also made these positions highly sought after. And, in the days of the spoils system, an appointment as collector of a major port was a way for newly-elected presidents to reward their loyal supporters with lucrative federal offices. Here in New Bedford, for example, the collector when this building was completed was Lemuel Williams Jr. He had been appointed by Andrew Jackson in 1829, replacing an earlier collector, Russell Freeman. This sparked considerable controversy, and the two men are said to have ended up in a fistfight in the streets of New Bedford.

The first photo was taken 50 years after the building was completed, in 1886. By this point, New Bedford’s whaling industry was in decline, but it otherwise remained a busy port. This would remain the administrative headquarters of the customs district until 1913, when the federal government consolidated the many different districts around the country. As a result, all of the districts in Massachusetts were combined into a single one, although some of the customs offices, including this one in New Bedford, would remain open as satellite offices.

Today, the surrounding buildings from the first photo are gone, but the custom house itself is still standing. It has seen a few changes over the years, including the removal of the cupola, which had been added around 1850. Overall, though, it is well preserved in its historic appearance, and it is still actively used as offices for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. It is a contributing property in the New Bedford Historic District, which was designated as a National Historic Landmark district in 1966, and it is also a part of the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park.

New Bedford Friends Meeting House, New Bedford, Massachusetts

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The New Bedford Friends Meeting House at 83 Spring Street, around 1865-1885. Image courtesy of the New York Public Library.

The building in 2022:

These two photos show the Friends Meeting House, which was built in 1822 by the large community of Quakers who lived in New Bedford. At the time, the town was a prosperous whaling port, and many of its leading citizens were members of the Religious Society of Friends, better known as Quakers. As part of their beliefs, Quakers generally rejected religious rituals and ceremonies, and this idea extended to the architecture of their meeting houses, which were generally plain, modest structures. The meeting house here in New Bedford is a typical example of this, showing an unadorned brick exterior that looks more like a house than a conventional place of worship.

This meeting house was built on the site of an earlier wooden one, which had been built in 1785. When the new one was built, the older one was moved diagonally across the street and converted into a residence at 17-19 Seventh Street. That building, which is still standing, was later owned by Nathan and Mary Johnson, an African-American couple who housed Frederick Douglass after his escape from slavery. It was there that he took on the surname of Douglass, at the suggestion of Nathan Johnson.

The first photo was taken sometime in the second half of the 1800s, probably around 1865 to 1885. Very little has changed since then, and the building remains in use as an active Quaker meeting house more than 200 years after it was completed. It is one of the many surviving historic buildings from New Bedford’s heyday as a major whaling center, and it is a contributing property in the County Street Historic District, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

Alexander Hamilton Statue, Boston

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The statue of Alexander Hamilton, located on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall between Arlington and Berkeley Streets, around 1865-1885. Image courtesy of the Boston Public Library.

The statue in 2021:

These two photos show the statue of Alexander Hamilton on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall in Boston. It was the work of artist William Rimmer, and it was commissioned by Thomas Lee, who presented it to the city of Boston as a gift. The statue stands nine feet, four inches tall, and it was carved out of Concord granite. It stands on a base of blue Quincy granite, which also includes a granite plaque featuring profiles of George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay.

The statue was unveiled here on August 24, 1865. The public reception was somewhat mixed, with some criticizing the use of granite rather than more conventional materials such as bronze, while others criticized the design itself. Contemporary sculptor Truman Howe Bartlett called it “the indifferent work of a genius, not the consistent labor of talent,” and art critic George B. Woods observed that Hamilton seemed to be “swathed like an infant or a mummy.” Nonetheless, other such as the statue’s benefactor, Thomas Lee, appreciated the design, and the harsh criticism of the statue seemed to soften over time.

Today, the statue still stands here more than 150 years after it was installed. Its surroundings have also seen few changes over the years, and most of the houses from the first photo are still standing today, although they are largely hidden by the trees. Overall, the Back Bay remains a well-preserved example of late 19th century residential architecture, and the tree-lined Commonwealth Avenue Mall is a major centerpiece of the neighborhood.

Auburn Lake, Watertown, Mass

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Auburn Lake in Mount Auburn Cemetery, around the 1870s or 1880s. Image courtesy of the New York Public Library.

The scene in 2021:

As discussed in the previous post, Mount Auburn Cemetery was established in 1831 as the first rural cemetery in the United States. Up until this point, Boston-area graveyards typically occupied small plots of land near town centers. They were a practical necessity as a place to bury the dead, with little emphasis on landscaping. Even the gravestones themselves, while often elaborately carved, served a purpose by reminding people of death and mortality.

However, by the early 19th century many of these graveyards were becoming overcrowded, especially in fast-growing places like Boston. Motivated by concerns about public health, along with shifting societal attitudes regarding death, proponents such as Dr. Jacob Bigelow advocated for a new, expansive   cemetery on the outskirts of Boston. The result was Mount Auburn Cemetery, which was laid out on the north side of the Charles River, on the border of Cambridge and Watertown,

Unlike the purely functional colonial-era graveyards, Mount Auburn was designed to be both a quiet resting place for the dead, and also a peaceful place for the living to visit in the days before public parks were common. It was carefully landscaped, with burial plots situated along winding paths, and  grounds that were interspersed with trees, hills, and ponds. Overall, the effect was a park-like setting that, to many, may have helped to soften the harsh realities of death.

These two photos show Auburn Lake, one of the three ponds in the cemetery. It was once known as Meadow Pond, but in the late 1850s it was renamed Auburn Lake. This appears to have occurred around the same time that the ponder underwent improvements, including lining the banks with stone. By the time the first photo was taken around the 1870s, Auburn Lake featured a bridge, which crossed the narrow portion between the northern and southern halves of the pond, and it also had a swan house in the center, with at least one swan visible in the photo.

Today, about 150 years after the first photo was taken, not much has changed in this scene. The swan house is long gone, but otherwise Auburn Lake looks much the same as it did in the first photo. This is due, in part, to an extensive restoration project that occurred in 1998, involving draining and dredging it, and then replanting the areas along the banks. Overall, as is the case with Auburn Lake, the cemetery still has the same park-like environment that its founders had envisioned, and it remains a quiet place in the midst of the busy inner suburbs of Boston.