Ames Building - Boston, MA - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

At the intersection of Washington Street, State Street, and Court Street, is the 13-story Ames Building. This building was built in 1893, and, at the time, was the tallest office building in Boston (some church steeples in the city were taller). Fredrick Ames had financed the building. The architects who built it were Shepley, Rutan, and Coolidge, who designed it in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. The building was used as an office building for most of its existence. Early tenants included Old Colony Trust, Columbian National Bank and the Winthrop national bank. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

The building became empty eight years before being purchased in 2007 by Normandy Real Estate Partners. The building is being renovated and made into a hotel and restaurant. The plan was to open in the fall of 2009. At the time of the visit on October 23, 2009, the building was still surrounded by fencing and did not look ready to open. In 2009, Cambridge Seven Associates, Normandy Real Estate Partners, and Ames Hotel Partners was awarded the 2009 Historic Preservation Award by the Bostonian Society for their work in preserving the building as they convert it to a hotel.

Fredrick Lothrop Ames was a well known industrialist in New England. According to his obituary in the New York Times (September 14, 1893), he was the wealthiest man in New England. He was the Vice President of the Old Colony Railroad and the Fall River Steamboat Line. He was part of the Ames family who ran the Ames Shovel Works, which was at one time the largest manufacturer of shovels in the world. The cause of death was determined to be cerebral apoplexy, which was likely a stroke.

Sources:

Wikipedia (Ames Building):
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New York Times (F. L. Ames Sudden Death):
(visit link)

Bostonian Society (Boston History Awards Gala, 2009):
(visit link)

Street address: 1 Court Street Boston, MA United States 02108 County / Borough / Parish: Suffolk Year listed: 1974 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Architecture/Engineering Periods of significance: 1875-1899 Historic function: Commerce/Trade Current function: Commerce/Trade Privately owned?: yes Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Season start / Season finish: Not listed Hours of operation: Not listed Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

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