The Bedford Block is an historic commercial building at 99 Bedford Street Boston, Massachusetts, in an area called Church Green. Built in 1875 in a style promoted by John Ruskin called Venetian Gothic. The style may also be referred to as Ruskinian Gothic.[2]
Bedford Block | |
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| Location | Boston, Massachusetts |
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| Coordinates | 42°21′11.44″N 71°3′29.04″W / 42.3531778°N 71.0580667°W |
| Built | 1875 |
| Architect | Charles Amos Cummings; Willard T. Sears |
| Architectural style | Venetian Gothic |
| NRHP reference No. | 79000368 [1] |
| Added to NRHP | August 21, 1979 |
It was designed by Charles Amos Cummings and Willard T. Sears for Henry and Francis Lee [3] as a retail shoe center in an area that had been destroyed by the Great Boston Fire of 1872.[4] The building was added to the National Historic Register in 1979. Building was renovated in 1983 in conjunction with the Bay-Bedford Company.[2]
The Bedford Block's exterior is constructed of polychromatic bands of New Brunswick red granite, Tuckahoen marble, and pressed terra-cotta panels manufactured in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[2][5] It was the first building after the Great Fire to use New Brunswick red granite as a material.[4]
The first floor features rough rustic blocks. Upper floor details include arched bay windows, Viollet-le-Duc inspired iron balconets[4] and flat column pilasters.[2] Each roof gable is topped with a finial crown.[2] There is a glazed tile clock is located in a 5-story tower at the corner of Bedford and Summer streets.
See also
editFootnotes
edit- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
- ^ a b c d e Susan Southworth; Michael Southworth (2008). AIA Guide to Boston (3rd ed.). Guilford, CT: Globe Pequot. ISBN 978-0-7627-4337-7.
- ^ Richard M. Candee; Naomi Miller; et al. (2009). Morgan, Keith N. (ed.). Buildings of Massachusetts: Metropolitan Boston.. University of Virginia Press. p. 71. ISBN 978-0-8139-2709-1.
- ^ a b c Mary Melvin Petronella; Edward W. Gordon (2004). Victorian Boston today: twelve walking tours. UPNE. pp. 58. ISBN 978-1-55553-605-3.
- ^ Richard M. Candee; Naomi Miller; et al. (2009). Morgan, Keith N. (ed.). Buildings of Massachusetts: Metropolitan Boston.. University of Virginia Press. p. 72. ISBN 978-0-8139-2709-1.
References
edit- Morgan, Keith N., editor, Richard M. Candee, Naomi Miller, et al. Buildings of Massachusetts: Metropolitan Boston. University of Virginia Press: 2009. ISBN 978-0-8139-2709-1.
- Placzek, Adolf K. Macmillan. Encyclopedia of Architects. 4 vols. Free Press: 1982. ISBN 0-02-925000-5.
- Shand-Tucci, Douglas. Built in Boston: City and Suburb, 1800–2000. The University of Massachusetts Press: 1999. ISBN 1-55849-201-1.
- Withey, Henry F. Biographical Dictionary of American Architects (Deceased). Hennessey & Ingalls: 1970.
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