{"nrhp_refnum":"82001918","name":"B and B Chemical Company","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"780 Memorial Dr.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cambridge","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.359897525000065,"lon":-71.11537562799998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-04-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"An industrial building at 780 Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts, built in 1937 for the B&B Chemical Co. as offices, laboratories and an experimental factory. It has a long, low main block and a separate manufacturing building behind it.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it the earliest and best of Cambridge's 1930s modern structures, a clean-lined example of International style industrial architecture by a well-known firm. Its horizontal bands of windows, symmetrical facades and central tower are cited as early examples of a style with few surviving examples in the United States. It was accepted despite being under 50 years old because of its architectural quality.","narrative":"Built in 1937 at 780 Memorial Drive in Cambridge, this industrial complex was designed by Coolidge, Shepley, Bulfinch & Abbott for B&B Chemical Co., a subsidiary of the United Shoe Machinery Corporation. It housed offices, laboratories and an experimental factory producing adhesives for shoe manufacturing and other industries. The main building measures 50 by 270 feet, with three-story wings flanking a four-story central section. Continuous bands of windows, glass block on the ground floor and metal-framed sash above, emphasize its horizontal lines, and a central tower with a curved canopy, glass bay and clock face is the only vertical element. A reinforced concrete frame lies behind the glass and glazed brick facade. A separate two-story manufacturing building stands behind it. The property was recognized as an early, well-preserved example of International style architecture applied to industry, and as the earliest and best of Cambridge's 1930s modern buildings, even though it was less than 50 years old at the time.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Coolidge, Shepley, Bulfinch & Abbott","architectural_style":"International","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Listed as in industrial use, owned by Polaroid Corporation at the time of the form; the form records no alterations.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:54.495311-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/0/7906/63790600/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/82001918.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001918/ebc59b0e12-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001918/ebc59b0e12-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Daderot","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:B_and_B_Chemical_Company,_784_Memorial_Drive,_Cambridge,_MA_-_IMG_2955.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Daderot</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:B_and_B_Chemical_Company,_784_Memorial_Drive,_Cambridge,_MA_-_IMG_2955.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790600","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B_B_Chemical_Company","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4836981"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/b-and-b-chemical-company-82001918/"}