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American House (Boston)

The American House (established 1835) was a hotel in Boston, Massachusetts, located on Hanover Street. Abraham W. Brigham,[4] Lewis Rice (1837–1874),[5][6][7] Henry B. Rice (1868–1888),[8][9] and Allen C. Jones (c. 1921) served as proprietors.[10] In 1851 the building was expanded,[11] to a design by Charles A. Alexander. In 1868 it had "the first hotel passenger elevator in Boston."[12] By the 1860s it also had "billiard halls, telegraph office, and cafe."[13] In the late 19th century it was described as "the headquarters of the shoe-and-leather trade" in the city.[14] Guests of the hotel and restaurant included John Brown,[15][16] Ralph Waldo Emerson,[17] William Whitwell Greenough,[18] Charles Savage Homer,[19] Zadoc Long,[20] and George Presbury Rowell.[21] Many groups held meetings there, among them: Granite Cutters' International Association of America,[22] Letter Carriers' Association,[23] National Electric Light Association,[24] and New England Shorthand Reporters' Association.[25] The hotel closed in 1916, and re-opened under new management in 1918.[1] It permanently closed on August 8, 1935,[26] and the building was shortly afterwards demolished to make room for a parking lot.[27][28][29] The John F. Kennedy Federal Building now occupies the site.[30]

American House
American House, c. 1852
American House (Boston) is located in Boston
American House (Boston)
Location within Boston
General information
TypeHotel
Location56 Hanover Street
Boston, Massachusetts
United States
Coordinates42°21′39″N 71°03′32″W / 42.3608°N 71.0589°W / 42.3608; -71.0589
Opened1835
Renovated1851
Demolished1935
Technical details
Floor count6
Floor area44,000 sq ft (4,100 m2)
Design and construction
Architect(s)William Washburn (renovation)
References
[1][2][3]

References

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  1. ^ a b "American House Closes Tomorrow." Boston Daily Globe. 7 August 1935: p. 11.
  2. ^ King's Hand-Book of Boston 9th ed. Buffalo, N.Y.: Matthews, Northrup & Co., 1889. p. 68.
  3. ^ Ellis, George E. Bacon's Dictionary of Boston. Boston: Houghton, Mifflin & Co., 1886. p. 10.
  4. ^ Boston almanac. 1837
  5. ^ "Lewis Rice" [1809-1877]. Memorial biographies of New England historic genealogical society, v.7, 1871-1880. Boston: the Society, 1907
  6. ^ A.Forbes, J. W. Greene. The rich men of Massachusetts: containing a statement of the reputed wealth of about fifteen hundred persons, with brief sketches of more than one thousand characters. Boston: W. V. Spencer, 1851
  7. ^ George S. Rice. "Lewis Frederick Rice" [1839-1909]. Boston Society of Civil Engineers, papers and discussions, v.6, no.5, May 1919
  8. ^ King's Handbook of Boston, 4th ed. 1881
  9. ^ Massachusetts Charitable Fire Society. "Henry Brigham Rice" [1843-1903]. Acts and by-laws: list of members and officers, and sketches of members deceased, 1892-1904. Boston: University Press, 1904
  10. ^ Boston register and business directory, 1921
  11. ^ Edwin M. Bacon (1883), King's dictionary of Boston, Cambridge, Mass: Moses King, publisher, OCLC 838858, OL 25099518M
  12. ^ James Henry Stark (1882), Stranger's Illustrated Guide to Boston and Its Suburbs ...: With Maps of Boston and the Harbor, Photo-electrotype co, OCLC 36732469, OL 20519797M
  13. ^ A guide to Boston and vicinity: a complete hand-book, directing the stranger how to find its public buildings, hotels, depots, places of amusement, horse cars, churches, benevolent and religious institutions, newspaper and telegraph offices, cemeteries, etc.; with a map of the city and numerous fine steel illustrations; also, a guide to the principal first-class stores in the various lines of trade. Boston: 1867
  14. ^ King's Handbook of Boston, 4th ed. 1881
  15. ^ Walter Muir Whitehill. "John Brown of Osawatomie in Boston, 1857." Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Third Series, Vol. 69 (Oct., 1947 - May, 1950)
  16. ^ Edward Renehan. The secret six: the true tale of the men who conspired with John Brown. Univ of South Carolina Press, 1997
  17. ^ Van Wyck Brooks. Life of Emerson. NY: Dutton, 1932
  18. ^ Barrett Wendell. "Memoir of William Whitwell Greenough" [1818-1899]. Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Second Series, Vol. 14, Feb. 1901
  19. ^ Philip Conway Beam. "Winslow Homer's Father." New England Quarterly, Vol. 20, No. 1 (Mar., 1947), pp. 51-74
  20. ^ Diary of Zadoc Long, in: Alfred Cole, Charles Foster Whitman. History of Buckfield, Oxford County, Maine, from the earliest explorations to the close of the year 1900. Buckfield, ME: 1915
  21. ^ George Presbury Rowell. Forty years an advertising agent, 1865-1905. NY: Printers' ink publishing co., 1906
  22. ^ Granite cutters' journal, April 1921
  23. ^ Boston Almanac. 1891
  24. ^ Electrical Review and Western Electrician, Feb. 27, 1915
  25. ^ New York Public Library. Semi-annual dinner, 1900, menu and program. Dinner, 1901, menu and program.
  26. ^ "Tried Japanese Bellhops First." Boston Daily Globe. 11 August 1935: p. C8.
  27. ^ "Begin Razing Monday of American House." Boston Daily Globe. 24 August 1935: p. 19.
  28. ^ "Boston Proper and Back Bay. Archived 2013-06-29 at archive.today" Map. Atlas for the City of Boston. G. W. Bromley & Co., 1938. Web. 7 May 2013. (shows the American House has been replaced by a parking lot)
  29. ^ Jones, Leslie. Aerial view of Scollay Square area. 1947 (approximate). Boston Public Library. 7 May 2013. (shows the parking lot occupying the former site)
  30. ^ David Kruh. Always something doing: Boston's infamous Scollay Square, rev. ed. Northeastern University Press, 1999

Further reading

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  • New-Yorker, 1838
  • "American House". Gleason's Pictorial. 3. Boston, Mass. 1852.
  • Ballou's Pictorial, March 5, 1859, p.157
  • Molly W. Berger. Hotel Dreams: Luxury, Technology, and Urban Ambition in America, 1829-1929. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2011
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to American House (Boston, Massachusetts).

Images

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    American House, 1835
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    c. 1850
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    Map of Boston, showing location of American House, 1883
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    Geo. A. Plummer dry goods shop, in hotel building, 19th century
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    Advertisement for new American House, "refurnished," 1920


 

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