{"nrhp_refnum":"03000253","name":"National Biscuit Company Carton Making and Printing Plant","other_names":["Nabisco Carton Making and Printing Plant","The \"Biscuit\"","Dia Center for the Arts"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"3 Beekman St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Beacon","county":"Dutchess County","state":"NY","lat":41.49988776850003,"lon":-73.98221597383763,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2003-04-18","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Industry"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A large one-story industrial plant at 3 Beekman Street in Beacon, Dutchess County, New York, built in 1929 along the Hudson River for the National Biscuit Company to make and print cartons. It is later known as the Dia Center for the Arts.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the plant is significant under Criterion A for industry and Criterion C for architecture. Its reinforced concrete and steel construction allowed wide open work floors, steel windows and rooftop monitors that flooded the floors with natural light, and reduced vibration from heavy presses. It also employed a large share of Beacon's workforce during the Depression.","narrative":"Built in 1929 beside the Hudson River in Beacon, this sprawling brick, steel and concrete building was designed to make and print cardboard cartons for the National Biscuit Company. It has three one-story sections with brick fire walls, a small two-story office block, and a railroad shed on the west side. Monumental steel windows line the east and west walls, and more than sixty sawtooth skylight monitors on the roof bring in even northern light. Below, over 270 concrete mushroom columns help absorb the vibration of heavy printing machinery. The building was listed for its role in industry and for its architecture. Reinforced concrete columns removed the need for interior bearing walls, allowing vast open work rooms. Planned additions were never built, so the north and south walls remain unfinished. In the 1930s the plant employed about 190 people, nearly 8 percent of Beacon's workforce, at a time when sales rose during the Depression.","period_of_significance":"1929-1953","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"No style","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Described as in an excellent state of preservation, retaining nearly all original character apart from removal of heavy machinery and a 1950s loading dock; current function is museum.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:54.0101-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/03000253.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03000253/b3d8af400b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03000253/b3d8af400b-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Rolf Müller (User:Rolfmueller)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Diabeacon_2006.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Rolf Müller (User:Rolfmueller)</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Diabeacon_2006.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75317421","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110894839"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/dutchess-county/national-biscuit-company-carton-making-and-printing-plant-03000253/"}