The Perkins Block, at 335-337 Dwight Street (corner of Main Street–the old Depot Square) in Holyoke, was built in circa 1872-1875. It features detailed cornice and window surrounds, all done in metal. An early tenant of the building was John Eaton Chase, who ran a mill supply store.
The corner of North and West Streets in Pittsfield was the site of the Berkshire Hotel from the 1820s to 1866. In 1868, the headquarters of the Berkshire Life Insurance Company was built here (current address: 5-7 North Street). The building as it exists today was constructed in three stages. The first section, designed by Louis Weissbein of Boston, had a basement level below three floors and a Mansard roof with gable windows. In 1911, the Mansard roof was removed and two additional stories were added by Joseph McArthur Vance of Pittsfield. In 1927, the building was extended to the west with a new addition by Henry Seaver of Pittsfield. Berkshire Life, founded in 1851, left the building to move to a new headquarters in 1959. In 2001, Berkshire Life merged with The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America.
Here are links to some historic images of this building:
In 1813, the Shakers of Hancock constructed a building, the Trustees’ Office, in which to conduct business and accommodate visitors from what they referred to as “The World.” Part of Hancock Shaker Village, it is located just across the border from Hancock in Pittsfield (the town line passes through the eastern end of the village). In 1852 the Shakers more than doubled the size of the original building by extending it to the south. It was also reoriented to face west. A kitchen ell was added in 1876, which joined the Office to a woodshed to the east. The entire structure was completely altered in an eclectic Victorian style in 1895. There was also a gift shop/fancy goods store in the building. The Office was home to the Trustee and Central Ministry Eldress Mary Frances Hall (b. 1876) until her death in 1957. Continue reading “Trustees’ Office and Store, Hancock Shaker Village (1813)”
Born in Ireland and coming to America as a child, John T. Dewey became a businessman in Northampton. He built the commercial block at 24-36 Pleasant Street in about 1912. It is a Romanesque Revival building that features brick, cast iron and stone arches. Taking advantage of an alleyway on the north, the facade of the Dewey Block extends around the northwest corner.
Adjacent to the Old South Meeting House (Church) in Boston, and surrounding it on the north and east, is the Old South Building, constructed as an office rental property by the church in 1903. Designed by Arthur Bowditch, it is located on the site of Gov. John Winthrop‘s second house, where he died in 1649. The house was used as the parsonage house of Old South, until it was demolished by the British during the Revolutionary War for firewood during the siege of Boston. The current building‘s address is 294 Washington Street and 10 Milk Street. The three postcards in this image (see link) show the area before the building was constructed (left) and after (center and right).
The origins of the building at 79 Broad Street in Westfield are uncertain and complicated by the fact that the house has been completely altered inside. It was built between 1810 and 1830 and is said to have been a blacksmith shop. It was later converted into a residence and is now used as offices. The building is transitional in style from the Federal to the Greek Revival and has an addition and a projecting pediment and brackets that were added in the later nineteenth century. The front doorway was added in the late 1970s.
At 339 Main Street in downtown Worcester is the Burnside Building, built in 1880. The structure is a five-story brick commercial building designed by the architects Bradlee, Winslow and Wetherell of Boston and built by the Norcoss Brothers in an eclectic Romanesque style with sandstone trim. The building replaced an earlier commercial block on the site and was erected by the heirs of lawyer Samuel Burnside. His daughter Harriet Burnside also left money for the construction of Burnside Fountain in Worcester.
