The Old Corner Bookstore, part of Boston National Historical Park

See the Historic Sites web page for an interactive location map.

LOCATION

The Old Corner Bookstore is located at 283 Washington Street, the corner of Washington and School streets.

GENERAL INFORMATION

While the Old Corner Bookstore is a stop on the Freedom Trail ® and an attraction within Boston National Historical Park, it is now a commercial building that is currently leased by Chipotle Mexican Grill. Other than stopping in for a meal, there is nothing to do at the site.

BOOKSTORE HISTORY

The Old Corner Bookstore is the oldest commercial building in Boston. It actually started out as a pharmacy in 1718 and didn’t become associated with the publishing business until 1829 when Timothy Carter opened the Old Corner Bookstore. By 1845, most of the building was occupied by the publishing company Ticknor and Fields, a major player in the 1800s with clients like Henry Longfellow, Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Louisa May Alcott, all Boston area residents. When William Ticknor died in 1864, his partner James Fields sold the building to Edward Dutton, another publisher, and over the subsequent years various publishing and other retail firms occupied the space.

The building was nearly torn down in 1960 but was saved when local citizens founded Historic Boston, Inc. and raised $100,000 to buy the property. However, other than saving and eventually restoring the building, nothing was ever done with it history-wise. It has always remained a commercial building for lease. In the 21^st century, in addition to Chipotle, it has been home to Boston Globe and Ultra Diamonds.

There is a push to have the building converted into a museum dealing with the history of publishing in Boston when the Chipotle lease expires, but Historic Boston claims the building has always been a commercial space, plus it is not in the museum business. Thus, some organization would have to lease the building and create a museum.

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