What is this?

J

Justin7

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Wasn't sure where to post this, but what is this building? It's labeled as city hall...

city-hall-boston-massachusetts.jpg


So confused.
 
That looks like the School Committee headquarters on Court Street. Definitely not Old City Hall.
 
I'm not sure who occupies the building now, but I'm pretty sure that is the old City Hall Annex on Court Street.
 
Thank you both. Any idea why they removed the statues?
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Sure is a nice-looking building. Palladio in urban Vicenza.
 
It was built around 1914 as an annex to Old City Hall which is directly behind it.
 
Justin7 said:
Thank you both. Any idea why they removed the statues?
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Ive often wondered that myself. I just assumed it was structural or maintenance issues, but maybe someone here knows the story. I'd really like to know as well.
 
This is a glorious old building. Combined with Old City Hall, I find it hard to believe that it still had less office space than the new one at Government Center. I've had occasional fantasies about the city government being moved back into these buildings, which would make far more sense than exile to the Seaport.
 
New City Hall probably has more square footage than those two buildings combined. However, I think it would be hard to argue that New City Hall has more USABLE square footage due to all the windowless rooms and wasted volume on split level procession theater.
 
briv said:
I'm not sure who occupies the building now, but I'm pretty sure that is the old City Hall Annex on Court Street.
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I think this is still owned by the City. I believe the Boston School Dept is located here. Also the Boston Home Center is (or recently was) located here. It provides assistance for 1st time City of Boston home buyers.
 
Very Interesting, I believe this is a school building. And I also find it hard to believe that new City hall has that much more sq footage. It sure as hell does not look better.

I too am interested in why the statues were removed. Are the statues of different people or same person in different positions? Any meaning behind statues?

Maybe we could put some new statues of Diane Wilkerson and Chuck Turner up there?!
 
According to Edwin Monroe Bacon in The Book of Boston, they are "four allegorical female figures." He doesn't go further than that. They were designed by Roger Noble Burnham, designer of the bronze doors at the Forsyth Dental Center in the Fenway.
 
They were removed in 1941 because they were unsafe. I would love to know what became of them. I hope they weren't melted for scrap.
 
^^ They were metal?

I guess that make sense. Much lighter.

Given the date it is almost a sure thing that they would have been melted down for the war effort.
 
Has anyone actually tried contacting the city about this? Or maybe looking through old building permits for that address?
 
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