1900s Archives - Page 111 of 133

Washington Street, Boston (2)

November 26, 2016August 2, 2014 by Derek Strahan

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.

The scene in 2014:

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)

November 26, 2016August 1, 2014 by Derek Strahan

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.

Washington Street in 2014:

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

February 9, 2018July 31, 2014 by Derek Strahan

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

The building in 2014:

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

November 26, 2016July 31, 2014 by Derek Strahan

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

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

State Street in 2014:

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.

Quincy Market, Boston (2)

February 9, 2018July 31, 2014 by Derek Strahan

Another Quincy Market scene, facing west, looking toward Faneuil Hall, around 1904. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The same scene in 2014:

Another view of Quincy Market, with the 1904 photo showing the various food vendors outside the building. Today, the market is oriented toward tourists instead of Boston residents, although the exterior of the building is largely the same. The South Market building, on the extreme left-hand side of the photos, is also there, as is the corresponding North Market building on the opposite side of Quincy Market.

Feeding Pigeons at Park Street Station, Boston

November 25, 2016July 31, 2014 by Derek Strahan

A woman feeding pigeons along the Boston Common next to Park Street station, sometime between 1900 and 1920. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The same scene in 2014:

The first photo was probably taken not long after Boston built its subway network, and the Park Street station was where it all began. As mentioned in these posts (Post 1 and Post 2) of the interior of the station, Park Street and Boylston were the first two subway stations in North America, and today Park Street is still a major hub on the “T”, where passengers can transfer between the Red and Green lines. It is also near the start of the Freedom Trail and the Massachusetts State House, so it is frequented by tourists as well.

I don’t know who the woman in the picture was, but it is safe to say that everyone in the photo has probably been dead for over 30 years. And, unlike the people in the two photos, the pigeons that still inhabit Boston Common are still dressed pretty much the same way.