{"nrhp_refnum":"82001879","name":"Fabens Building","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"312-314 Union St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lynn","county":"Essex County","state":"MA","lat":42.46470878800005,"lon":-70.94327211099994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-02-25","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Commerce","Law","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A four-story brick commercial block with a rounded \"flat iron\" plan at 312-344 Union Street in downtown Lynn, Massachusetts, built in 1890 to designs by Henry W. Rogers & Son.","why_significant":"It is a good local example of commercial Romanesque Revival design, with two-story arches, sandstone trim and brick pilasters in an unusually fine version of a motif common in Lynn. It is one of the most prominent buildings in the Burned District, the downtown area devastated by the 1889 fire. Its distinctive curved plan and prominent location add to its importance.","narrative":"Rising at the head of the Lynn Shoppers Mall, this four-story brick commercial block follows a curved \"flat iron\" plan and dominates the entrance to downtown. It was built in 1890 on the site of two brick buildings and sheds destroyed in the great fire of 1889. The design by H.W. Rogers & Son won a competition among local architects, and the planned beveled corner was changed to a rounded one before construction. The main facade has 19 bays of brick arches with pink sandstone trim, brick pilasters, slender cast-iron mullions and a corbelled cornice. The rear section is plainer. It was built for William C. Fabens, a Lynn police court judge who kept his offices there. Masons and carpenters from outside Lynn carried out the work. The building is valued as a fine local example of Romanesque Revival commercial design and was cited in Rogers's obituary as one of his best. Modern storefronts have altered the ground floor.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899 (specific date 1890)","architect_builder":"Henry W. Rogers & Son (architect); C.G. Locke of Bradford, masons, and Joseph Breed's Sons, carpenters","architectural_style":"Commercial adaptation of late Romanesque Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Rated good condition and altered; the original lower-story fenestration has been marred by modern storefronts. The form lists commercial use and work in progress.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:54.209152-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/40/7947/63794740/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/82001879.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001879/e1c6fac89d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001879/e1c6fac89d-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Marcbela (Marc N. Belanger)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fabens_Building_Lynn.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Marcbela (Marc N. Belanger)</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fabens_Building_Lynn.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63794740","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fabens_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5427599"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/essex-county/fabens-building-82001879/"}