{"nrhp_refnum":"09000376","name":"E. & B. Holmes Machinery Company Building","other_names":["The Cooperage"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"55-59 Chicago St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Buffalo","county":"Erie County","state":"NY","lat":42.86996000000005,"lon":-78.86878999999999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2009-06-02","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Industry","Invention"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A brick industrial complex at 55-59 Chicago Street in the Old First Ward of Buffalo, Erie County, New York, made up of the Mill Building (late 1870s, possibly incorporating c.1855-56 fabric), the Forge Building and Tool Rooms (c.1910-12), and the Pattern Building and Office wing (1913).","why_significant":"The building housed the E. & B. Holmes Machinery Company, which made barrel-making machinery that gained national attention, won commendation at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition, and by 1888 had earned the Holmes brothers over 60 patents. It is also a surviving example of nineteenth-century vernacular industrial architecture in Buffalo's waterfront manufacturing area.","narrative":"Located at 55-59 Chicago Street in Buffalo's Old First Ward, this brick industrial complex grew over several decades around a central courtyard. The oldest part, the four-story Mill Building, was largely rebuilt in the late 1870s after a boiler explosion in 1863 and a fire in 1878, and may retain some fabric from about 1855-56. Additions followed around 1910-12, when Colson-Hudson built the Forge Building and Tool Rooms, and in 1913, when Lansing, Bley & Lyman designed the Pattern Building and Office wing. The design is plain and functional, with segmental-arched windows and painted company lettering still visible on the walls. The complex is important as the works of the E. & B. Holmes Machinery Company, a maker of barrel-making machinery. The firm won praise at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition, held over 60 patents by 1888, and employed about 400 people at its peak. A partial collapse in 2007 damaged the Mill Building, and stabilization work has since been undertaken.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Mill Building: architect/builder unknown; Forge Building and Tool Rooms: Colson-Hudson (c.1910-12); Pattern Building and Office wing: Lansing, Bley & Lyman (1913)","architectural_style":"No style (vernacular industrial)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as vacant with work in progress. The Mill Building partly collapsed in 2007, stabilization and enclosure were largely complete, and new construction was expected to begin in March 2009.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:53.720908-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/09000376.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/09000376/4528e7f706-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/09000376/4528e7f706-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Pubdog (talk)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:E._%26_B._Holmes_Machinery_Company_Building_Dec_09.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Pubdog (talk)</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:E._%26_B._Holmes_Machinery_Company_Building_Dec_09.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75317600","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._%26_B._Holmes_Machinery_Company_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5321682"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/erie-county/e-and-b-holmes-machinery-company-building-09000376/"}