Athenaeum Press
About this property
Athenæum Press is an historic building located at 215 First Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The structure occupies the entire block between First Street, Second Street, Athenæum Street, and Linskey Way, which was formerly known as Munroe Street. Topped by a statue of Athena sculpted by Adio diBiccari, the building is visible from the nearby Charles River and the Longfellow Bridge. The Athenæum Press was designed by the architecture firm, Lockwood, Greene, and Company, with tile vaults designed by the Guastavino Company. The building was completed in 1895. The structure was built for Edwin Ginn and Ginn & Company to house its printing operations, and was built using principles of late nineteenth-century textile mill construction. Due to its highly visible location, the building was given a number of stylistic embellishments, including a large sculpture of Athena designed by Adio diBiccari. The front of the building resembles an Ancient Greek temple implemented in brick, patinated copper, and glass. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. The building was the third major printing house built in Cambridge (after those of Harvard University Press and Riverside Press), and one of the first major industrial sites on Cambridge's riverfront. The building has 380,000 square feet (35,000 m2) of floor space and was renovated circa 2005. The facility was used for many years to print textbooks. Ginn & Company later became part of Pearson Education. As of 2019, occupants include the Cambridge Athletic Club, Partners HealthCare Innovation, the Lean Enterprise Institute, SAGE Therapeutics, Constellation Pharmaceuticals and several other small businesses. National Register of Historic Places listings in Cambridge, Massachusetts "Souvenir of the Athenaeum Press" by Ginn and Company, 1903. A 24-page book with descriptions and photographs, available for free download. Silent movie showcasing printing activities in the building in 1925. Moviecraft archive.
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Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was Athenaeum Press listed on the National Register?
Athenaeum Press was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 12, 1982.
What type of historic resource is Athenaeum Press?
Athenaeum Press is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Athenaeum Press?
The period of significance for Athenaeum Press is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near Athenaeum Press?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Athenaeum Press will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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