From Ashes to Commerce
Analyzing an Area - Overview of Summer Street’s Development Throughout the 1800s and 1900s
147-185 Summer Street throughout its history in the 1800s and 1900s has been a dynamic and rapidly changing space. One of the most notable things about the area is the way that space is relegated on Summer street on both sides of the road. One one side of the road there is a large triangular island that intersects with three streets, Summer Street, High Street, and Federal Avenue. This busy interaction fostered great traffic in the area as can be seen not only in the development of more and more transit lines in the area but also in images showcasing the great pedestrian traffic around South Station and the surrounding area (see cover image above for an example). In 1874 most of 147-185 Summer Street was vacant and instead filled with little more infrastructure than stables and small residential flats. (F.W. Beers & Co., Fire Insurance District Atlas, 1874). This was in part due to the devastation of the Great Boston Fire of 1872 that ravaged the area (Boston Daily Globe, “Notes About the Great Fire”). This natural disaster coincided with the various vacant lots in 1874 and tell a story about the oncoming development into the late 1800s and early 1900s.
Following the Great Fire of 1872, the Summer street area slowly evolved and developed from vacant lots to a bustling urban center. As early as 1882 the area began to have more commercial 'renters enter the area, such as a leather product shop on 149-151 Summer Street and a large medical store, Brown’s Bronchial Troches on the corner of Summer Street and Atlantic Avenue (Sanborn Map & Publishing Co., Insurance Map of Boston, 1882). However, this area had not yet evolved into the bustling commercial district it would be in the future as evident by the fact that the Hecht Building was not yet established. Jacob Hecht (who you can learn more about here) would eventually take over the Wool warehouse on Atlantic Avenue and develop it in 1902 (G.W. Bromley, Atlas of the city of Boston, city proper and Roxbury, 1902). Hecht's presence in the area showcased how much the area had developed and grown from its initial devastation in 1872. While many business thrived and profited during this period of growth, other business faced hard decisions and drastic changes in the face of capital improvement.
In Figures 6-8 see how Summer Street developed from the Great Boston Fire of 1872 into a bustling cityscape
Fig 6.) 147-185 Summer Street in 1874; note the amount of buildings that are marked "vacant" in the area
Fig 7.) 147-185 Summer Street in 1882; note the development in the area and the reduction in "vacant" markings
Fig 8.) 147-185 Summer Street in 1901; notice the competition for empty space as more and more business enter the area
In Figures 9-11 see how a part of Atlantic avenue developed from an empty warehouse into a part of the Hecht Industrial Empire
Fig 9.) The area that would eventually house the Hecht building as assorted, unconglomerated buildings and a stable
Fig 10.) The area that would eventually house the Hecht building slowing consolidating into a cotton warehouse
Fig 11.) The Hecht Building after absorbing all the unaffiliated buildings and empty space in the area, including the Cotton Warehouse
Ebb and Flow of Industry: The John C. Haynes Company
Starting in 1883, the name “J.C. Haynes” appears on 144-148 Summer Street in addition to a number of other ventures that popped up in the area during that time. John C. Haynes was the name of one of the most profitable and distinguished music instrument companies in the early 20th century. The company would eventually be absorbed in 1903 by the Oliver Ditson Company but in that time, John C. Haynes spread his musical ventures across Boston, becoming wealthier in the process (The Boston Drum Builders, “John C. Haynes”). Following the end of the John C. Haynes Company in 1903, the building on 144-148 Summer Street was taken over by new management that sought to retained some of its musical legacy.
Following John C. Haynes’ death in 1907, his estate worked to develop his real estate holdings across the city. One such area was the location of his old space on Summer Street where an office building was constructed on the corner of Summer and High Street. The building functioned as a storefront on its first floor and a light manufacturing space on the floors above it (The Boston Daily Globe, “New Office Building Planned”). The development of the Haynes building highlights the change in tone of the 147-185 Summer Street area as it went from a devastated part of the Great Boston Fire into a burgeoning business and commerce area. Additionally, 147-185 Summer Street benefited significantly from transportation (which you can read out here) and featured some of Boston’s most notable philanthropic individuals (which you can read about here).
Fig 14.) An image of John C. Haynes, who lived from 1829-1907
Fig 13.) The location of the John C. Haynes Building on Summer and High Street
Fig 12.) The John C. Haynes building, planned in 1909, two years after his passing
Citations
"NOTES ABOUT THE GREAT FIRE.: BRIEF LOCAL NEWS." Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922), Nov 23 1872, p. 12. ProQuest. Web. 8 May 2021 .
“John C. Haynes,” The Boston Drum Builders, accessed May 8, 2021, https://www.bostondrumbuilders.com/haynes.
"NEW OFFICE BUILDING PLANNED.: HAYNES ESTATE TRUSTEES PROJECT SIX-STORY STRUCTURE AT SUMMER AND HIGH STS." Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922), Mar 25 1909, p. 7. ProQuest. Web. 8 May 2021 .
Hopkins, G.M., Atlas of the County of Suffolk, Massachusetts. Philadelphia: G.M. Hopkins & Co., 1874. Boston Public Library, via Atlascope.
Hopkins, G.M., City Atlas of Boston, Massachusetts. Philadelphia: G.M. Hopkins & Co., 1882. Boston Public Library, via Atlascope.
Bromley, G.W., Atlas of the City of Boston., Philadelphia: G.W. Bromley and Co., 1902. Boston Public Library, via. Atlascope.
Figure 6.) Hopkins, G.M., Atlas of the County of Suffolk, Massachusetts. Philadelphia: G.M. Hopkins & Co., 1874. Boston Public Library, via Atlascope.\
Figure 7.) Hopkins, G.M., City Atlas of Boston, Massachusetts. Philadelphia: G.M. Hopkins & Co., 1882. Boston Public Library, via Atlascope.
Figure 8.) Bromley, G.W., Atlas of the City of Boston., Philadelphia: G.W. Bromley and Co., 1902. Boston Public Library, via. Atlascope.
Figure 9.) Hopkins, G.M., Atlas of the County of Suffolk, Massachusetts. Philadelphia: G.M. Hopkins & Co., 1874. Boston Public Library, via Atlascope.
Figure 10.) Hopkins, G.M., City Atlas of Boston, Massachusetts. Philadelphia: G.M. Hopkins & Co., 1882. Boston Public Library, via Atlascope.
Figure 11.) Bromley, G.W., Atlas of the City of Boston., Philadelphia: G.W. Bromley and Co., 1902. Boston Public Library, via. Atlascope.
Figure 12.) Haynes Estate Trustees Project Six-Story Structure at Summer and High Sts. in "NEW OFFICE BUILDING PLANNED.: HAYNES ESTATE TRUSTEES PROJECT SIX-STORY STRUCTURE AT SUMMER AND HIGH STS." Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922), Mar 25 1909, p. 7. ProQuest. Web. 8 May 2021 .
Figure 13.)Bromley, G.W., Atlas of the City of Boston., Philadelphia: G.W. Bromley and Co., 1902. Boston Public Library, via. Atlascope.
Figure 14.) John C. Haynes, The Boston Drum Builders, accessed May 5th, 2021, https://www.bostondrumbuilders.com/haynes.