![]() Leventhal Park and Garage at Post Office Square. In 1912, the Angell Memorial Fountain, a watering trough for horses, was built across Milk Street from the site of the Norman B. Throughout these years of thriving commerce and the construction of new buildings, a small open space was preserved in Post Office Square. In 1980 the Federal Reserve Bank building, which had been designated as a Boston Landmark, reopened as the Meridian Hotel (now The Langham Hotel) after a complete renovation which included the opening of One Post Office Square, a 40 story office tower adjoining the Hotel. In the 1960’s and 1970’s, modern office towers opened at 225 Franklin Street, One Federal Street and 100 Federal Street. In 1947 the art deco New England Telephone and Telegraph headquarters building at 185 Franklin Street was finished. McCormack Federal Building and Post Office on Congress Street replaced the old post office. In 1922, the Federal Reserve Bank opened at the corner of Pearl and Franklin Streets. Ten Post Office Square, at the corner of Milk and Pearl Streets, was completed six years later. 20th CenturyĬonstruction in Post Office Square continued throughout the first half of the 20th century, with the completion of many of the buildings that encircle the square today.ġ2 Post Office Square, at the corner of Water and Pearl Streets, opened in 1917. ![]() The building was demolished in 1945, making way for the first Post Office Square parking garage, which was completed in 1954. Leventhal Park and Garage at Post Office Square, with its main entrance on Post Office Square. In 1874, the majestic Mutual Life Insurance Company building, designed by Nathaniel Bradlee, opened on the site of the Norman B. In 1835, the Governor of Massachusetts granted Judge Willard Phillips a charter founding the New England Mutual Life Insurance Company. The Mutual Life Insurance Company building combined with Arthur Gilman’s Equitable Building at Federal and Milk Streets, created an elegance of location unusual for the Boston of that period.Īmerica’s mutual life insurance industry had its first home in Post Office Square. Some of Boston’s most notable examples of Victorian architecture lined the triangular junction of Congress, Pearl and Milk Streets and surrounded the open areas of Post Office Square. It was at this time that this patch of land became known as Post Office Square for the Boston Post Office, a French Second Empire-style building, that stood between Milk and Water Streets, facing the Square. Streets were widened and extended, resulting in a triangular clearance of land in front of the new post office which, although only half-finished, had survived the fire. The Great Fire of 1872 erased the few remaining homes and tenements and gave way to much needed redevelopment of the Pearl Street area. The Boston Athenaeum and the Perkins Blind Children’s School were founded in the original Perkins houses, but the area, known at this time as Fort Hill, was generally considered a slum by 1866. By the 1850’s, warehouses and crowded immigrant tenements had replaced the prestigious homes. The Old South End’s proximity to this activity, as well as to water and rail freight transport, was better suited to commercial than residential uses. 19th Centuryīy 1844, the region encompassing Post Office Square and the waterfront abounded with banks, warehouses, wholesale and retail businesses and insurance companies. Notable Boston families including the Perkins’, the Quinceys and Pratts lived in elegant homes on Pearl Street. Pearl Street between Milk and High Streets was lined with large houses and their attendant stables and gardens. ![]() During this period, the area south of Milk Street between Washington Street and the waterfront, which encompasses Post Office Square, was known as the “Old South End”. After these rope works were destroyed by fire, a prestigious residential area took shape through the mid 1800’s. ![]() In the 18th Century, the Post Office Square area was home to many rope manufacturers who serviced the maritime industry. Bordered by Milk, Congress, Franklin and Pearl Streets, Post Office Square has evolved from a maritime district amid swamp and marshlands to a modern day financial and business center. Post Office Square, located in the heart of Boston’s Financial District, has had many faces throughout the years.
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