Old Corner Bookstore facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Old Corner Bookstore
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 Location in Boston
Location in Massachusetts
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| Location | 283 Washington Street Boston, Massachusetts |
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| Built | 1718 |
| NRHP reference No. | 73000322 |
| Added to NRHP | April 11, 1973 |
The Old Corner Bookstore is a historic building in Boston, Massachusetts. It stands at 283 Washington Street, right where it meets School Street. This building is very old, built in 1718.
It started as a home and a shop selling medicines. Later, in 1828, it became a bookstore. Today, it's a special spot on Boston's Freedom Trail, Literary Trail, and Women's Heritage Trail. The Old Corner Bookstore was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. It is also being considered as a Boston Landmark by the Boston Landmarks Commission.
Contents
A Look Back: The Bookstore's History
The land where the Old Corner Bookstore stands has a long history. It was once the home of Anne Hutchinson. She was a brave woman who was forced to leave Massachusetts in 1638 because of her religious beliefs.
In 1708, Thomas Crease bought the property. However, the house burned down in the Great Boston Fire of 1711. Crease then built a new building in 1718. This new building was used as a home and a place to sell medicines, called an apothecary shop. For many years, pharmacists used the first floor for their business and lived upstairs. In 1817, Dr. Samuel Clarke, whose son would become a famous minister, bought the building.
Becoming a Bookstore: A New Chapter Begins
The building became a bookstore for the first time in 1828. A man named Timothy Harrington Carter rented the space. He spent $7,000 to make the shop look new. He even added cool, small-paned windows that stuck out from the building.
From 1832 to 1865, the building was home to Ticknor and Fields. This was a very important publishing company in the United States. It was started by William Ticknor and later joined by James T. Fields. The Old Corner Bookstore became a popular meeting place for famous writers. Authors like Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Charles Dickens, and Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. would gather there.
Ticknor and Fields rented the whole building. They used only the corner part for their bookshop. Other parts of the building, especially the upstairs rooms and shops facing School Street, were rented out to other businesses. After William Ticknor passed away, James T. Fields wanted to focus more on publishing books than on running the retail store. So, in 1864, he sold the Old Corner Bookstore to E. P. Dutton. Ticknor and Fields then moved to a different street. After them, many other publishing companies and booksellers used the building.
In the 1890s, the shop sold many different magazines. This showed how important the building was to the literary world.
Saving a Piece of History: Preservation Efforts
In 1960, the Old Corner Bookstore was almost torn down! People wanted to build a parking garage there instead. But a group called Historic Boston, Inc. stepped in and "rescued" the building. They bought it for $100,000.
Historic Boston, Inc. is a group that works to save old and important buildings in Boston. They fix them up so they can be used today and in the future. Because of their efforts, the Old Corner Bookstore is now on the National Register of Historic Places. It's also recognized as a Boston Landmark, which means it's protected.
Who Used the Building: Past and Present Tenants
Many different businesses and people have used the Old Corner Bookstore building over the centuries.
Recent Businesses in the Building
More recently, the Old Corner Bookstore's shop space was home to the Globe Corner Bookstore. This store sold travel books and maps for 16 years, from 1982 to 1997. After that, a store selling products from Boston Globe newspaper was there from 1998 to 2002.
From 2005 to 2009, a jewelry store called Ultra Diamonds was in the building. After that, students and teachers from the North Bennet Street School used the space to show off their crafts. Today, the building houses a Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurant.
Gallery
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Advertisement for Carter & Hendee, 1832
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American Magazine of Useful and Entertaining Knowledge, v.3, 1837 (published by John L. Sibley, William D. Ticknor)
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Sheet music, published by Parker & Ditson, 1839 (illus. by David Claypoole Johnston)
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A. Williams & Co., 19th century
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c.1904
Images for kids
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2015
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Henry Oscar Houghton, 19th century
