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 Adio diBiccari (1914 – January 1, 2009) was an American sculptor. Career DiBiccari was born in Revere, Massachusetts, Revere to Italy, Italian immigrants, but grew up in East Boston and graduated from East Boston High School in 1932. He recei ...

, the building is visible from the nearby Charles River and the Longfellow Bridge.

History

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 Edwin Ginn (February 14, 1838 – January 21, 1914) was an American publisher, peace advocate and philanthropist. Biography Ginn was born in Orland, Maine, on February 14, 1838, into a Universalist farming family who were descendants of early se ...

and Ginn & Company, owners of ''The Athenæum Press'', 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

. 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 Riverside Insights is a publisher of clinical and educational standardized tests in the United States; it is headquartered in Itasca, Illinois. It is also a charter member of the Association of Test Publishers. Riverside Insights was establish ...

), and one of the first major industrial sites on Cambridge's riverfront. The building has 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 Pearson Education is a British-owned education publishing and assessment service to schools and corporations, as well for students directly. Pearson owns educational media brands including Addison–Wesley, Peachpit, Prentice Hall, eCollege, ...

. As of 2019, occupants include the Cambridge Athletic Club, Partners HealthCare Innovation, the

Lean Enterprise Lean enterprise is a practice focused on value creation for the end customer with minimal waste and processes. The term has historically been associated with lean manufacturing and Six Sigma (or Lean Six Sigma) due to lean principles being popu ...

Institute, SAGE Therapeutics, Constellation Pharmaceuticals and several other small businesses.

References

External links

Souvenir of the Athenaeum Press
by Ginn and Company, 1903. A 24-page book with descriptions and photographs, available for free download.

showcasing printing activities in the building in 1925. Moviecraft archive. {{Authority control Commercial buildings completed in 1895 Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Buildings and structures in Cambridge, Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Cambridge, Massachusetts

History

See also

References

External links