Simonds Manufacturing Company, Building No. 14, 23-55 North Street, Fitchburg

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The building is significant as part of the plant of Simonds Manufacturing Company, a maker of saws and machine knives. From the late century to the present, the company has been one of Fitchburg's major manufacturers. This build- ing was used for hardening processes, in which the saw blades were treated with heat and chemi- cals, and also for blacksmithing, in which the saws were tempered by repeated hammering. Its single-story height, monitors, and steel inter- nal framing are characteristic of early century mill design for heat-process buildings. Description: The single-story building measures x 83' in plan, with two unequal gabled-roofed bays, each with a large ridge monitor. All but the steel- framed east wall are brick, with segmental- arched, stone-silled openings now boarded up.

On the south elevation, each portion has a cen- tral loading door, with additional garage-door openings on the east side. The interior is unpartitioned and features a concrete floor, plate-girder posts, and angle-iron trusses sup- porting the roof and monitors. History: This building was built around as part of World War I-period expansion of the plant.