{"nrhp_refnum":"83000629","name":"Borden, A.J., Building","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"91-111 S. Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Fall River","county":"Bristol County","state":"MA","lat":41.70139668100006,"lon":-71.15786593299998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1983-02-16","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story red pressed brick commercial building at 91-111 South Main Street in Fall River, Massachusetts, built in 1889 to designs by Joseph M. Darling for Andrew Jackson Borden.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it a handsome late Victorian commercial building, second only to the Academy Building opposite. It is an important survivor that escaped the 1916 Fire, which destroyed much of Fall River's downtown commercial building stock. It is also tied to Andrew J. Borden, whose 1892 murder with his second wife became one of the most celebrated crimes in U.S. history.","narrative":"This three-story commercial block at 91-111 South Main Street in Fall River was built in 1889 for Andrew Jackson Borden, a retired undertaker who turned to real estate. Joseph M. Darling, described as the city's most prolific architect of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, designed it with a red pressed brick facade, stamped metal cornice, restrained cast iron ornament and punched windows set between belt courses. The original entrance lay in a narrow central bay between two cast-iron storefronts. Dry-goods stores occupied the storefronts until 1931, when a dime store arrived and remodeled the front; the present storefront dates from 1950. Local business colleges used the upper floors at various times. The building matters as a rare survivor of the 1916 fire that destroyed much of downtown Fall River's late-nineteenth-century commercial architecture, and for its link to Borden, whose 1892 murder drew national attention. His daughter Lizzie held the property until 1927.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Joseph M. Darling (architect)","architectural_style":"Late Victorian Commercial","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Commercial use at the time of recording; described as undergoing re-use, with the facade to be restored to its original pre-dime store appearance. A 1892 rear addition was demolished in 1981.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:56.416381-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/39/7893/63789339/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/83000629.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83000629/8aabdc2a7a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83000629/8aabdc2a7a-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Marcbela (Marc N. Belanger)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AJ_Borden_Building.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Marcbela (Marc N. Belanger)</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AJ_Borden_Building.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63789339","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A._J._Borden_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4647889"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/bristol-county/borden-a-j-building-83000629/"}