Colonial Block

Last updated
Colonial Block
Colonial Block, Springfield MA.jpg
Colonial Block
USA Massachusetts location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location1139-55 Main St., Springfield, Massachusetts
Coordinates 42°6′1″N72°35′11″W / 42.10028°N 72.58639°W / 42.10028; -72.58639
Built1902 (1902)
ArchitectMorse, Paseal
Architectural styleColonial Revival
MPS Downtown Springfield MRA
NRHP reference No. 83000743 [1]
Added to NRHPFebruary 24, 1983

The Colonial Block is a historic mixed-use retail, commercial, and residential block at 1139-55 Main Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1902-05, it is a relatively rare example of a mixed use building from the period built to provide a mix of uses, in particular residential, at a time when most building in the area were built for commercial and retail purposes. It has also anchored the southern part of Springfield's downtown area where it begins transitioning to more residential use. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. [1]

Contents

Description and history

The Colonial Block is located near the southern end of the built-up commercial downtown area of Springfield. It is on the north side of Main Street at the southeast corner with Stockbridge Street, and is adjacent to the McKinney Building to the east, across Crossett Lane, and abuts the Guenther & Handel's Block on Stockbridge Street. It is five stories in height, with a facade of yellow brick and brown sandstone. The Main Street facade is eleven bays, articulated by brick pilasters with stone capitals on the upper levels. Projecting polygonal bays at intervals give the facade an undulating character, in part because the projections are continued in the elaborate bracketed cornice. The ground floor storefronts, of which there are three on Main Street, have been modernized, with plate glass display windows flanking recessed entrances. [2]

The building was built as a speculative venture in 1902 by a local builder and real estate developer, Pascal Morse. It is a relatively rare example of a mixed use building from the period, in particular for its inclusion of residences, at a time when most building in the area were built for commercial and retail purposes. Its first floor was for built for retail use, the second floor housed offices and commercial space, and the upper three floors were residential. The building marked a transitional area between the urban downtown center of Springfield to the north, and more residential areas to the south. It also features distinctive Georgian Revival details not found on many other Springfield buildings. For many years, the principal retail tenant in the building was a furniture store. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belle and Franklin Streets Historic District</span> Historic district in Massachusetts, United States

The Belle and Franklin Streets Historic District is a residential historic district encompassing the surviving portions of 1914-16 apartment house development on the northwest side of downtown Springfield, Massachusetts. The properties are at 77—103 Belle St. and 240—298 Franklin Street, and were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bangs Block</span> United States historic place

The Bangs Block is a historic commercial building at 1119 Main Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1870 for a grocer, it was built as part of a trend of increasing commercialization at the southern end of the city's downtown area. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wells Block</span> United States historic place

The Wells Block is a historic mixed use commercial and residential block at 250-264 Worthington Street in downtown Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1876, it is a rare period example of a mixed-use retail and residential building. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burbach Block</span> United States historic place

The Burbach Block is a historic commercial and retail block at 1113–1115 Main Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1882, it is one of a series of buildings marking the area's transition from a smaller-scale residential service area to the commercial downtown. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carlton House Block</span> United States historic place

The Carlton House Block is a historic commercial and retail block at 9-13 Hampden Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1873, and updated in the early 20th century, it is a good example of Italianate architecture, built during the downtown's development as an industrial and commercial center. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driscoll's Block</span> United States historic place

Driscoll's Block is a historic commercial building at 211-13 Worthington Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1894, it was the first building to be built in the area after a fire destroyed five blocks of Worthington Street the previous year. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guenther & Handel's Block</span> United States historic place

The Guenther & Handel's Block is a historic commercial building at 7—9 Stockbridge Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1845 by Elam Stockbridge, it is one of the oldest surviving buildings in the city's downtown area, and one of its rare examples of Greek Revival commercial architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennedy-Worthington Blocks</span> United States historic place

The Kennedy-Worthington Blocks are three historic commercial and industrial buildings at 1585-1623 Main Street and 166-190 Worthington Street in downtown Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in the 1870s and 1880s, with a major restyling to two of them in 1912, the buildings were a major factor in the urban development of the area north of the city's traditional core. They were listed to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McKinney Building</span> United States historic place

The McKinney Building is a historic commercial building located at 1121-27 Main Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. It is locally significant as a good example of commercial Classical Revival architecture, and was part of generally southeastward trend in the growth of the city's downtown area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mills-Hale-Owen Blocks</span> United States historic place

The Mills—Hale—Owen Blocks were a collection of three historic mixed-use commercial and residential blocks at 959—991 Main Street in the South End of Springfield, Massachusetts. They occupied an entire city block on the east side of Main Street, between Union and Hubbard Streets, and were some of the city's best examples of commercial Italianate architecture, prior to their destruction in the 2011 Springfield tornado. They were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olmsted-Hixon-Albion Block</span> United States historic place

The Olmsted-Hixon-Albion Block is a historic commercial block at 1645-1659 Main Street in the north end of downtown Springfield, Massachusetts. The building is actually three separate 19th-century buildings that were conjoined by internal connections in 1929, making a good example of adaptive reuse of commercial architecture in the city. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patton and Loomis Block</span> United States historic place

The Patton and Loomis Block is a historic commercial block at 1628-40 Main Street in downtown Springfield, Massachusetts, United States. Built in 1864 and remodeled in 1909, it is a good example of commercial architecture built or updated during two of the city's boom periods, in this case by two of the city's major developers. The block was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Produce Exchange Building</span> United States historic place

The Produce Exchange Building is a historic commercial building at 194–206 Chestnut and 115–125 Lyman Street in downtown Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1899 and remodeled in 1926, it is one of the largest of Springfield's early 20th-century commercial buildings, used for many years as a wholesale produce market. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clovis Robert Block</span> United States historic place

The Clovis Robert Block is a historic mixed-use commercial and residential block at 338-348 Main Street in south Holyoke, Massachusetts. Built in 1881 and enlarged in 1888, it is a prominent early example of the work of local architect George P. B. Alderman, and is representative of development patterns in the city that served its growing French Canadian immigrant community. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity Block</span> Building in Springfield, Massachusetts

The Trinity Block is a historic commercial building at 266-284 Bridge Street in downtown Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1923, the mixed-use retail and office building is noted for its colorful facade, finished in cast stone and terra cotta. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hickey-Osborne Block</span> United States historic place

The Hickey—Osborne Block is a historic commercial-residential building in Peabody, Massachusetts. It is a distinctive repurposing of three residential structures, dating as far back as 1797, by raising them and building brick commercial ground floors beneath them. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everett Chambers</span> United States historic place

The Everett Chambers or Hotel Everett is a historic mixed-use commercial and residential building at 47-55 Oak Street in Downtown Portland, Maine. Built in 1902 to a design by local architect Frederick Tompson, it is an important surviving example of a lodging house, built early in the transition period from the 19th century boarding house to more modern 20th-century transient accommodations. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hooker Apartments</span> United States historic place

The Hooker Apartments are a large multiunit apartment building at the corner of Main and Greenwich Streets in the North End of Springfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1908, the building is one of a modest number of early 20th century apartment blocks to survive urban renewal efforts in the city's North End. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benson's New Block and the Mohawk Chambers</span> United States historic place

Benson's New Block and the Mohawk Chambers are a pair of mixed commercial and residential buildings at Main and Wells Streets in downtown Greenfield, Massachusetts. Built in 1913 and 1916, they are well-preserved and little-altered examples of period Neo-Classical commercial architecture. The buildings were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franklin Block (Portsmouth, New Hampshire)</span> United States historic place

The Franklin Block is a historic commercial building at 75 Congress Street in downtown Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Built in 1879, this three-story brick building is the largest Victorian-era building standing in the city. It occupies the city block between Fleet Street and Vaughan Mall, a former street that is now a pedestrian mall. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  2. 1 2 "NRHP nomination for Colonial Block". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 2013-12-09.