{"nrhp_refnum":"89002285","name":"Kennedy, F. A., Steam Bakery","other_names":["Kennedy Steam Cracker Bakery","Kennedy Biscuit Factory"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"129 Franklin St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cambridge","county":"Middlesex County","state":"MA","lat":42.36214330100006,"lon":-71.10100084199996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1990-01-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Architecture","Invention"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A large red brick industrial bakery complex at 129 Franklin Street in Cambridgeport, Cambridge, Massachusetts. It grew from 1875 to 1937 into a thirteen-section, U-plan building.","why_significant":"It is significant for its link to Cambridgeport's growth as an area of regional industrial importance and for its role in the baking and food processing industry. It is also a well-preserved brick industrial complex, made more notable because many neighboring industrial buildings were lost. The form finds local significance under criteria A and C.","narrative":"This red brick bakery complex in Cambridgeport was built in stages between 1875 and 1937 for the F. A. Kennedy Steam Cracker Bakery, later part of Nabisco. Thirteen interconnected sections form a U-plan building, four stories tall, with load-bearing brick walls, heavy timber framing, segmental arched windows and granite sills. Painted signs from several eras survive on its walls, and rows of brick bake ovens remain along the east wall. The Kennedy family business began in 1805 and moved to Cambridge in 1839, adopting steam power and reel ovens as it grew. The complex reflects how Cambridgeport became a center of heavy industry after the railroad arrived in 1853 and marshland was filled. Baking was among the city's leading industries in the early twentieth century. Most nearby factories were demolished in the 1960s, which makes this complex a rare survivor. Shoe manufacturing used it from 1952 to 1986, and it was vacant when documented.","period_of_significance":"1875-1937","architect_builder":"Frank A. Kennedy; Cass, F. G.; Hopkins, Albert B.; Stearns, Marshall N.","architectural_style":"No Style","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Listed as vacant/not in use, with work in progress; it was used for shoe manufacturing from 1952 to 1986. Several minor sections have been demolished.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:02.152552-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/61/7959/63795961/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/89002285.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89002285/0336d4aaef-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89002285/0336d4aaef-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Tim Pierce","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cambridge_MA_129_Franklin_St.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Tim Pierce</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cambridge_MA_129_Franklin_St.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795961","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F._A._Kennedy_Steam_Bakery","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5423804"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/middlesex-county/kennedy-f-a-steam-bakery-89002285/"}