The Athenaeum Press Building is an historic building located at 215 First Street in Cambridge

Cambridge, Massachusetts

Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...

, Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

. It occupies the entire block between First Street, Second Street, Athenaeum Street, and Linskey Way (formerly Munroe Street).

The front of the building resembles an Ancient Greek temple implemented in brick, patinated copper, and glass. Topped by a statue of Athena

Athena

In Greek mythology, Athena, Athenê, or Athene , also referred to as Pallas Athena/Athene , is the goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, warfare, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, justice, and skill. Minerva, Athena's Roman incarnation, embodies similar attributes. Athena is...

, it is visible from the Charles River

Charles River

The Charles River is an long river that flows in an overall northeasterly direction in eastern Massachusetts, USA. From its source in Hopkinton, the river travels through 22 cities and towns until reaching the Atlantic Ocean at Boston...

 and Longfellow Bridge

Longfellow Bridge

The Longfellow Bridge, also known to locals as the "Salt-and-Pepper Bridge" or the "Salt-and-Pepper-Shaker Bridge" due to the shape of its central towers, carries Route 3 and the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's Red Line across the Charles River to connect Boston's Beacon Hill...

.

History

The building was erected in 1895 by Lockwood, Greene & Company (with tile vaults designed by the Guastavino Company) and added to the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

 in 1982. It has 380000 square feet (35,303.2 m²) of floor space and was renovated circa 2005.

Ginn and Company owned the Athenaeum Press for many years, printing textbooks there. Ginn later became part of the Penguin Group

Penguin Group

The Penguin Group is a trade book publisher, the largest in the world , having overtaken Random House in 2009. The Penguin Group is the name of the incorporated division of parent Pearson PLC that oversees these publishing operations...

.

Current use

As of 2011, the largest tenant in the building is the Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Boston

Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Boston

The original Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Institute opened in Paris in 1895. Since then, Le Cordon Bleu has spread internationally, and in 2007, a school opened near Boston, Massachusetts.- Programs :...

which operates a fine dining restaurant called Technique on the first floor. Other occupants include the Cambridge Athletic Club (a local gym) and a variety of small businesses.

External links

• Souvenir of the Athenaeum Press by Ginn and Company, 1903. A 24-page book with descriptions and photographs, available for free download.
• Silent movie showcasing printing activities in the building in 1925. Moviecraft archive.