{"nrhp_refnum":"82001906","name":"American Net and Twine Company Factory","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"155 2nd St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cambridge","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.36685754000007,"lon":-71.07954186699999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-04-01","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story brick industrial factory at 155 Second Street (rear) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, built in 1875 for the American Net and Twine Company. Later additions form an L-shaped complex.","why_significant":"The American Net & Twine Company became the first American firm, in 1844, to manufacture cotton twine and netting, at a time when most fish nets were handmade hemp imports from England. The 1875 factory was built expressly for the rapidly expanding firm. It is also a good example of mill construction with distinctive arched detailing.","narrative":"Built in 1875 at 155 Second Street in Cambridge, this three-story brick factory was constructed expressly for the American Net & Twine Company, a rapidly expanding firm. The company had become the first American manufacturer of cotton twine and netting in 1844, when most fish nets were handmade hemp imports from England. The mill-construction building has wide segmental arched windows set within segmental arched arcades and a jerkinhead gable roof pierced by broad gabled dormers. A central projecting pedimented tower on the south facade rises four stories and has segmental arched openings set within flat arched arcades. Between 1886 and 1916, two additions to the west and south gave the complex an L shape. These additions continue the fenestration and detailing of the original building, with rough-cut granite sills and a flat roof. The building has remained in industrial use, and its listing recognizes both its architecture and its link to early American twine and netting manufacture.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Mill Construction","criteria":[],"status_note":"Present use is industrial; the form lists the building as unaltered and not moved, with later additions made between 1886 and 1916.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.626919-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/98/7905/63790598/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/82001906.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001906/d0f6614a07-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001906/d0f6614a07-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Tim Pierce","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:American_Net_and_Twine_Company.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Tim Pierce</a>, <a href=\"https://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:American_Net_and_Twine_Company.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790598","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Net_and_Twine_Company_Factory","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4744581"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/american-net-and-twine-company-factory-82001906/"}