{"nrhp_refnum":"83000767","name":"Springfield Steam Power Company Block","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"51-59 Taylor St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Springfield","county":"Hampden County","state":"MA","lat":42.10522447400007,"lon":-72.59211090999997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1983-02-24","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story brick industrial block at 51-59 Taylor Street in Springfield, Massachusetts, built in 1881 and recorded as part of the Downtown Springfield Multiple Resource Area. The architect is unknown.","why_significant":"The block is tied to a major nineteenth-century power company and housed several small industrial firms. It is an excellent example of a typical Springfield pattern: an industrial block built for lease to companies that often went on to build their own space. It also shows features of the Panel Brick style, popular for late 19th-century industrial buildings.","narrative":"Built in 1881 at 51-59 Taylor Street in Springfield, this three-story brick block has a freestanding rectangular plan and was built for industrial use. It retains most of its Panel Brick features, including segmental arched windows with 10/10 sash and a patterned brick cornice, although the first story on the north side has been infilled and the storefronts were altered in the mid-20th century. The Springfield Steam Power Company was organized in 1881 by the directors of the Wason Car Manufacturing Company to supply power to manufacturers in Wason-built blocks. The company advertised a 400 horsepower double engine with four boilers. The Springfield Sewing Machine Company was the first occupant, and later tenants included J.B. Chapman & Co., brass founders, and the John Swaine Co., ironworks. The block is considered a typical Springfield pattern of industrial space built for lease, and it was listed for its historical associations and its architecture.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Panel Brick","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Present use is commercial (originally industrial). The first-story storefronts were altered in the mid-20th century and the north first story has been infilled.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:57.111866-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/55/7903/63790355/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/83000767.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83000767/67cf96ac4d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83000767/67cf96ac4d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 3.0","author":"John Phelan","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Springfield_Steam_Power_Company_Block,_Springfield_MA.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">John Phelan</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Springfield_Steam_Power_Company_Block,_Springfield_MA.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790355","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Springfield_Steam_Power_Company_Block","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7581056"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/hampden-county/springfield-steam-power-company-block-83000767/"}