Nomination for Whitney & Company

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 8-86) 440 OMB No. 1024-0018 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form APR 2 4 1989 NATIONAL REGISTER This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations of eligibility for individual properties or districts. See instructions in Guidelines for Completing National Register Forms (National Register Bulletin 16). Complete each item by marking "x" in the appropriate box or by entering the requested information. If an item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not applicable." For functions, styles, materials, and areas of significance, enter only the categories and subcategories listed in the instructions. For additional space use continuation sheets (Form 10-900a). Type all entries. 1.

Name of Property historic name Whitney & Company other names/site number 2. Location street & number city, town state MA 142 Water Street Leominster code MA 2/Pnot for publication h/avicinity county Worcester code 027 zip code 01453 3. Classification Ownership of Property [X private public-local public-State I public-Federal Category of Property XX building(s) district site structure object Name of related multiple property listing: n/a Number of Resources within Property Contributing Noncontributing 1 0 buildings 0 sites 0 structures 0 0 objects 2 Total Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register- 0 4.

State/Federal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, 1 hereby certify that this X nomination request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the NationalRegister of HistoricPlaces andmeets the proceduraland professional requirements setforth in 36 CFRPart 60. In my opinion, the property [X] meets does not meet the National Register criteria. ] See continuation sheet. Exécutive Director, Massachusetts Historical Commission Signaturg of certiying ofticiat Da3/30/87 Istateca Htstoric Preservation Officer State or Federal agency and bureau In my opinion, the property ]does not meet the National Register criteria. See continuation sheet. Signature of commenting or other official Date State or Federal agency and bureau 5.

National Park Service Certification I, hereby, certify that this property is: Centered in the National Register. See continuation sheet. determined eligible for the National Register. See continuation sheet. determined not eligible for the National Register. pornh Surge 6-7-89 removed from the National Register. other, (explain:) for Signature of the Keeper Date of Action Whitney & Company, Leominster, Massachusetts : 6. Function or Use Historic Functions (enter categories from instructions) Industry/Processing/Extraction Current Functions (enter categories from instructions) Vacant/Not in Use 7. Description Architectural Classification (enter categories from instructions) Late Victorian/Queen Anne Materials (enter categories from instructions) foundation - Brick walls Asphalt Steel (sheet metal) Tar & gravel roof other Describe present and historic physical appearance.

The Whitney & Company, Leominster, is a large, three- and four-story frame factory building with a central flat-roofed tower projection midway along its facade. A variety of sheet metal and concrete block additions have been added at the rear of the site, but the three major original elevations remain unaffected. . Other minor alterations include the application of later asphalt shingle siding and window infill and the removal of the center tower's top story and castellated parapet. The property is an industrial plant, which historically served as a paper box manufacturing facility. The main rectangular block is built into a relatively steep hillside with the facade shifting from 4 to 2 1/2 stories as it extends eastward along Water Street.

To the rear of the main block, a number of original and later ells of varying heights and masses extend northward into the hillside and along the Whitney Street edge of the site. The property defines the eastern edge of the city's central manufacturing district. It is adjacent to the sprawling F. A. Whitney Carriage Co. (NR 198-) to its west across Whitney Street, and there are several other frame factories further north and south on Whitney Street. However, the area immediately to the east along Water Street is the beginning of the large East Side residential neighborhood, a late-nineteenth/early twentieth century working class community that evolved to house the city's many mill workers. The main factory facade fronting on Water Street dates in part from 1893 and was fully built by 1900.

It is a long rectangular mass, 4 stories at its western end and gradually decreasing to 2 1/2 stories at the eastern end. The facade is 238 feet long while its seven-bay west elevation extends 82 feet along Whitney Street. The building's design features a strong wooden cornice, which projects slightly from the building plane and is capped by a flat roof. The facade is divided into 26 bays, with a projecting two-bay unit slightly west of center. This unit extends a full story above the facade as a tower element and is now capped by a matching wood cornice and flat roof. The windows that remain are 6/6 double-hung sash in plain wood frames. Many of the openings are presently boarded and most of the sash have been removed.

There is alater door in the bay east of the tower, a two-bay recessed loading dock three bays west of the tower unit, and an original hooded doorway in the second bay from Whitney Street. Its gabled hood survives, although the original carved brackets have been replaced by simpler wood bracing. x See continuation sheet NPS Form 10-900-a (8-88) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Whitney & Company Leominster, Massachusetts Section number - Page The east elevation rises up Oak Avenue and is mainly of two-story height. At che water street end, the five-bay, two-story end of the main factory repeats che cornice desian and window pattern of the facade. Abutting this mass is added at the first level. To the north, a three-bay, two-story wing projects out to the street line beyond the open shed.

Its first-story facade has been rebuilt in concrete block with a large loading door in its south half. At the second story, an original wood loading door is flanked by 6/6 windows. Both this element and the adjoining three-story block are capped by an overhanging wood cornice with simple wood brackets. The factory's west elevation along Whitney Street is seven bays deep and a full four stories in height. There is a large single-light wood door with paneled base in the third bay from the south corner. All other openings have, or had wood 6/6 sash, but the majority of openings are infilled with 1960s fiberglas panels, which replaced the original sash. A two-story, flat-roofed ell of two-bay depth is attached to the north elevation of this building. Further east along the rear elevation is a full-height frame wing, which extends six bays to the north.

This later mass features regularly-spaced 8/8 wood sash and a simple wooden cornice. It too is sheathed in asphalt shingles. Based on their construction, materials, scale, and review of early photos, these two additions date from ca. 1915 and ca. 1910 respectively. A one-story, storage/shipping addition, also of early twentieth century date (ca. 1915), stands beyond the main factory to the north of its rear wing. It has four pairs of multi-light wood sash along its west elevation but is almost entirely concealed from view by the later concrete addition to its west along Whitney Street. Several other later warehouse additions of lesser significance occupy the balance of the Whitney and Company site.

Facing Oak Avenue and set back 100 feet from the main factory is a flat-roofed, two-story metal warehouse addition built of corrugated metal with an assortment of 12/12 wood sash and corrugated fiberglas infill at most of the former window openings. From the opposite (west) side, the building has a similar metal elevation but of four-story height and with only three bays of infilled openings. A date of ca. 1923 is suggested by the heavy timber interior construction, comparable exterior siding to the former 1929 storage warehouse at the nearby F. A. Whitney Carriage Co. complex, and an undocumented 1923 date on the state survey form. The early 1920s were a period of steady expansion for the local industries to which the company supplied boxes, likewise supporting this construction date. OMB Approval No.

1024-0018 (OPS Form 10-00-a United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number _ / Page _2 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Whitney & Company Leominster, Massachusetts Another four-story metal warehouse (ca. 1923), also of nondescript character, is connected to the first metal warehouse by a narrow metal-enclosed passage of slightly low height. A long, one-story, painted concrete block wing extends northward along Whitney Street, set back from the street edge by a ten-foot berm. It has a flat roof, a loading door in the angled southwest corner bay, and a row of smal norizontal metal windows high up along its west elevation. Between the two north wings of the original factory is a tall brick chimney, ca. 1915, which rises above the four-story factory.

It is of square form and has patterned brick panels at the top and a simple steeped brick cornice. The factory interior features wood floors and plain columns and is a modest industrial design. The property has been poorly maintained and is in a neglected state at present. It is a present being rehabilitated according to the standards of the Secretary of the Interior. The asphalt shingle exterior and inappropriately infilled windows would be removed and the historic design of the main factory restored under the new owner's proposed renovation plan. corrugated metal warehouse additions and the concrete block wing would be removed. These changes would accentuate the form and design of the original factory complex and its relationship to the sloping site.

(UPS Form 10-800- United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 7 Page 3 OMB Approvel No. 1024-0018 Whitney & Company Leominster, Massachusetts Archaeological Description While no prehistoric sites are currently recorded on the property, sites may be present. One known prehistoric site is recorded in the general area (within one mile). This factor plus the locational characteristics of the property, high ground overlooking Monoosnoc Brook, 1ndicates a moderate ootential for locating prehistoric sites. In general, however, there is little potential for locating significant archaeological survivals, either prehistoric or historic because of extensive industrial and existing structures within the parcel. Whitney & Company, Leominster, Massachusetts 8. Statement of Significance

Statement of significance

Certifying official has considered the significance of this property in relation to other properties: X nationally statewide X] locally Applicable National Register Criteria X Criteria Considerations (Exceptions) Areas of Significance (enter categories from instructions) Industry Architecture Period of Significance 1839-1930 Significant Dates 1893 1910-1915 Cultural Affiliation n/a Significant Person n/a Architect/Builder unknown State significance of property, and justify criteria, criteria considerations, and areas and periods of significance noted above. The Whitney & Company Factory, Leominster, retains its integrity of location design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association and, fulfills Criteria A and C of the National Register on the local level. The property is one of the few substantial wood-frame factory buildings remaining in Leominster.

Despite its asphalt siding, the building's overali design integrity as a late-nineteenth century industrial plant is largely intact. The building has important associations with Leominster's industrial development in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, having been the home of one of the city's two major folding box manufacturers. The boxes produced by the company were used largely by comb and shirt manufacturers to package their products for national distribution, thus providing a vital link in the success of the local industrial base. Toca hnauestr al The property's historic context is defined by the strong industrial economy that developed in Leominster from the post-Civil War era until the late 1920S.

The vitality of the economic base derived from the multitude of small industries in the town, so that downturns in one industry were frequently offset by technological advances or new market demands in another. Key industrial products included baby carriages, piano cases, horn (and later plastic) combs and accessories (jewelry, buttons, hair ornaments), and men's shirts and collars. of these major industries, the horn and shirt industries were particularly in demand of packaging materials for distributing their products. Leominster's paper box industry actually began in the 1850s, when Charles Carter, a clothier, began making paper boxes in a small shop. This business was sold to George L. Chase in 1880 but after moving and expanding several times, closed in 1895.

Another boxmaker, John Davis, began making boxes in his home in 1854-1855, employing young girls and moving the shop several times before closing in 1870. in t, Mars. . f. Dodge began a similar home business. She was joined by her son, Wooster F. Dodge, and the business became E. F. Dodge and Co. This firm was the first to become a substantial manufacturing facility and continued well into the twentieth century as one of the city's two major box producers. KX See continuation sheet Whitney & Company, Leominister, Massachusetts 9.

The rest of the file

Bibliography, boundary description, and the people who prepared and reviewed the nomination.

Major Bibliographical References Burdett, Edna M., Industries of Leominster, September 22, 1910, Papers read at Meetings of the Leominster Historical Society, 1933. City Directories, Leominster, MA 1886-1961, on file in Leominster Public Library, Historical Collections. Emerson, William A., Leominster, Historical & Picturesque, Lithotype Publishing Co., Gardner, MA 1888. Nichols, Kate, Leominster of Today Illustrated, Leominster, 1900, p. 229. Previous documentation on file (NPS): preliminary determination of individual listing (36 CFR 67) has been requested previously listed in the National Register previously determined eligible by the National Register designated a National Historic Landmark recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey # recorded by Historic American Engineering Pecord # 10.

Geographical Data Acreage of property Tess than acre UTM References A 9 127,38,2,5 Zone Easting 1 14,711,19,00 Northing See continuation sheet Primary location of additional data: State historic preservation office Other State agency Federal agency Local government University Other Specify repository: See continuation sheet Verbal Boundary Description XX See continuation sheet Boundary Justification XX See continuation sheet Form Prepared By name/title_ Margo B. Webber, Pres. Consult. w/ Betsy Friedberg, Nat. Reg. Director, MHC organization Massachusetts Historical Commission - date - February 1989 street & number - 80 Boylston Street, Suite 310 _ telephone_617 727-8470 city ortown - Boston, _state MA _ zip code 02116 (ePS Pom 10-000-n United States Department of the Interlor National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet OMB Approval No.

1084-0018 Whitney & Company Leominster, Massachusetts Section number 8 Page - Within this_context, Fred Abbott Whitney and his brother Walter F. Whitney, nephews of Francis A. Whitney who was so instrumental in the success of Leominster's baby carriage and shirt industries, founded another box manufacturing company in 1886. Their shop, Whitney & Company, was first located near the Water Street railroad crossing and then in the old Enterprise Building. The business prospered and in 1893, the large factory at Whitney and Water Streets was constructed. By 1910, a large rear wing had been added and two other related paper businesses had been acquired, the Handifold Toilet Paper Co. and the National Fibreboard Co. plant on Mill Street. The first two rear additions (ca. 1910-1915), were of matching frame construction and provided additional manufacturing space to meet new demands.

In addition, a separate boiler plant and chimney and several large open storage sheds stood behind the factory. As of 1906, the city's two box makers, E. F. Dodge & Co. and Whitney & Company, employed upwards of 200 people. In its early years, the company manufactured boxes of all types, including fancy hand-painted and satin-lined boxes as well as folding cartons. The company acquired special machinery, which it boasted could make every style and description of folding box. As the industry grew, it concentrated more and more on folding cartons. This trend reflected similar trends in Leominster's comb and shirt industries: emphasis on high volume production for national distribution rather than specialty good items and localized markets.

Whitney & Company continued in operation at this site until 1961, expanding in the 1920s with large metal-sided warehouse additions that replaced the earlier s fie erneionse aear e nte. open-sided warehouse additions that in turn replaced the original open-sided storage sheds. The two Whitney brothers remained in the business throughout its growth years. F. W. Whitney served as president until the late 1930s and was succeeded by F. A. Whitney as president until he too retired in 1944. The property was one of the city's two major packaging manufacturers during its period of greatest industrialization between 1880 and 1925. The earlier home-based box makers had all closed by the turn of the century, in light of the fact that packaging had become a mechanized industry requiring substantial factory space and machinery to produce in the high volumes required by local industry.

Architecturally, the building's original appearance was a handsome period example of vernacular industrial design. The early frame expansion to the north was also reflective of turn-of-the-century frame factory design. Over the years, the removal of the tower's top story and crenellated parapet has slightly lessened its visual impact. The exact date of this change could not NPS Form 10-900-a 8-86) United States Department of the Interlor National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 2 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Whitney & Company Leominster, Massachusetts be documented, but it most likely coincides with the ca. 1940 asbestos siding treatment of the exterior. The more recent siding treatment and rear additions clearly detract from the original character.

Despite these changes, however, and with historic rehabilitation being proposed, the factory is a fine example of the city's last phase of frame factory construction. Like most of Leominster's industries, the packaging industry was comprised of several mid-sized shops. This was also true of the comb industry, where a great deal of capital was not required in order to set up a business and so there were many small enterprises in the early years. This pattern is reflected today in the stock of remaining industrial structures in the city. Several small frame factories survive, but these have mostly been inappropriately updated and do not have the imposing scale and size of the Whitney & Company complex. Two earlier frame factories at the nearby F. A. Whitney Carriage Co.

have recently been renovated but these date from the 1860s and 1870s and are quite different in their Second Empire designs. of the other mid-size frame factories, such as the Gane Shirt Co., were demolished or replaced by larger brick plants as their occupants expanded in the early twentieth century years. Whitney & Company dates from the last period of frame factory construction and is one of the last surviving examples of its type. (NPS Form 10800-a. United States Department of the Interlor National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 10 Page oMB Approvel No. 1021-0010 Whitney & Company Leominster, Massachusetts 10.

Verbal Boundary Description Beginning at the northeast corner of Water and Whitney Streets, the boundary runs east along the north side of Water Street for a distance of 238.5' turns northward along the west side of Oak Avenue for a distance of 82.5', returns westward and runs 100.', and then follows the east propert) line of the parcel for a distance of 72.5' northward, 8.' westward, 85.' northward, 7.' westward and 29.84 northward to the northeast corner of the parcel. From here the boundary proceeds westward for 113.53' to the east side of Whitney Street, then turns southward along the east side of Whitney Street to the point of origin. Boundary Justification The nomination includes the entire parcel formerly owned and developed by Whitney & Co. box manufacturers and which still remains under single ownership.

This boundary includes the original factory, its historic addition to the rear, the brick chimney from its power plant, and three later rear additions. These last elements were all included because they remain under single ownership, even though they are of lesser significance. The boundary excludes unrelated industrial structures to the north as well as unrelated residential properties along Oak Avenue to the east. Water Street and Whitney 1 str actures to Street form logical boundaries to the south and west, denoting the prominent corner location originally selected for its high visibility and proximity to other Water Street factories. Ne8 Ferm 109000 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet OMB Approvel No. 1024-018 Section number .

Page_ - SUPPLEMENTARY LISTING RECORD NRIS Reference Number: 89000440 Whitney & Company Property Name N/A Multiple Name Date Listed: 06/07/89 Worcester County MA State This property is listed in the National Register of Historic Places in accordance with the attached nomination documentation subject to the following exceptions, exclusions, or amendments, notwithstanding the National Park Service certification included in the nomination documentation. aue for Signaturé of the Keeper 6-7-89 Date of Action Amended ============= Items in Nomination: Period and Level of Significance: 1839 was inadvertantly entered as the beginning date for the period of significance, 1893 was intended as indicated by the text and the specific dates. Sufficient context is not provided to justify the property's significance at a national level, local is applicable.

This information was confirmed with Ann Tait, Acting National Register Director, MASHPO, by telephone.

DISTRIBUTION: National Register property file Nominating Authority (without nomination attachment) NITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOJ IATIONAL PARK SERVIC NATZONAL ALUATTON RE URN SHEE PLACES REQUESTED ACTION: NOMINATION PROPERTY Whitney & Company NAME: MULTIPLE NAME: STATE & COUNTY: MASSACHUSETTS, Worcester DATE RECEIVED: 1/24/8 DATE OF 16TH DAY: DATE OF WEEKLY LIST: 5/25/8 DATE OF PENDING LIST: 5/09/8 DATE OF 45TH DAY: 5/08/8 REFERENCE NUMBER: 89000440 NOMINATOR: STATE REASONS FOR REVIEW: APPEAL: N DATA PROBLEM: N LANDSCAPE: N LESS THAN 50 YEARS: N PERIOD: PROGRAM UNAPPROVED: REQUEST: N SAMPLE: N SLR DRAFT: N NATIONAL: COMMENT WAIVER: N V ACCEPT RETURN REJECT 6/1/8%As ABSTRACT/SUMMARY COMMENTS: erchitectwally and historicall important incustrial Suilding RECOM./ CRITERIA Accept Q4C REVIEWERS DISCIPLINE Caua DATE utertural Hestory DOCUMENTATION see attached comments X/N see attached SIR {N CLASSIFICATION count _resource type STATE/FEDERAL AGENCY CERTIFICATION FUNCTION historic current DESCRIPTION architectural classification materials descriptive text SIGNIFICANCE Period Areas of Significance--Check and justify below Specific dates Builder/Architect Statement of Significance (in one paragraph) summary paragraph completeness clarity applicable criteria justification of areas checked relating significance to the resource context relationship of integrity to significance justification of exception other BIBLIOGRAPHY GEOGRAPHICAL DATA acreage verbal boundary descriptior UTMS boundary justificatior ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTATION/PRESENTATION sketch maps USGS maps photographs presentation OTHER COMMENTS Questions concerning this nomination may be directed to Phone Signed Date Whitney é Company Leominster, MA Photo by : Margo B.

Webber October, 1987 Neg. at : 136 Ridge Ave, Newton, MA 02159 View looking nw towaras Waten St. facade of main factory (1) Photo 1 of 5 For LEASE WHITNEY CARRIAGE 534-6249 Whitney é Company Leominster, MA Phats by: Margo B. Webber October, 1987 Neg, at : 136 Ridge Are., Newton, MA 02159 Niew looking east towards west and south elevations of main factory (1) Photo 2 of 5 Missing Core Documentation Property Name Whitney & Company County, State Reference Number Worcester County, 89000440 Massachusetts The following Core Documentation is missing from this entry: Nomination Form x _ Photographs (missing #3-5) _USGS Map * * COMMISSION* * ali 1 k4) April 18, 1989 Carol Shull National Register of Historic Places Department of the Interior National Park Service A.PR 24 1989 NATIONAL REGISTER P.O. Box 37127 Washington, DC 20013-7127 Dear Ms.

Shull: Enclosed you will find the following nomination form: Leominster, Cluett Peabody & Company, 123 First Street Leominster, Whitney & Company, 142 Water Street Norfolk, Norfolk Grange Hall, 28 Rockwood Road Webster, Rock Castle School, Prospect Street, HPCA #11019MA Webster, Thompson School, Prospect Street, HPCA #11018MA Al1 have been voted eligible by the State Review Board and have been signed by the State Historic Preservation Officer. Owners were notified of pending State Review Board consideration 30-75 days before the meeting and were afforded the opportunity to comment. Comments received to date are attached to the nomination form. Sincerely, Detay etsy Friedber - Friedwey National Register Director Massachusetts Historical Commission Enclosure: BF / Massachusetts Historical Commission, Valerie A.

Talmage, Executive Director, State Historic Preservation Officer 80 Boylston Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02116 (617) 727-8470 Office of the Secretary of State, Michael J. Connolly, Secretary ..-