NAMCO Block
NAMCO Block | |
NAMCO Block from Union Street | |
43°28′32″N 72°23′23″W / 43.47556°N 72.38972°W / 43.47556; -72.38972 | |
Built | 1920-1922 |
---|---|
NRHP reference No. | 910016152[1] |
Added to NRHP | November 14, 1991 |
The NAMCO Block is an apartment block built in Windsor, Vermont in 1920-1922. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991 as an example of a large-scale company housing project.[1] The building is located at the corner of Union and Main Streets, in the southern part of the historical center of Windsor.[2]
History
The National Acme Company (NAMCO), formed after the National Acme Manufacturing Company acquired the Windsor Machine Company, was the main employer in the town of Windsor between 1915 and 1930. The success of NAMCO was at a large extent dependent on its ability to attract the workforce from outside Windsor. The block represents the approach to urban settlement which is based on family housing in contrast to housing of single men, the predominant approach at the time.[2]
The property on the northern bank of the Mill Brook, where the block is currently located, was purchased by the Windsor Machine Company in the late 1880s. A new plant was constructed nearby in 1909, and a club and a dormitory for the workers was constructed on the site. The club was badly damaged by fire and demolished in the middle of the 1910s, which caused a housing shortage. At the time, the number of workers at the plant was around 1600. The new apartment block was constructed in order to replace the lost housing. The location was chosen close to the plant as there was no public transportation in Windsor, and the use of cars was restricted in winter by the climate conditions.[2]
The contract to build the block was awarded to Massachusetts-based L. A. Lafrance company and started in the spring of 1920. By the time of completion in 1922, the NAMCO block was the biggest residential building in northern New England.[2]
In 1933, during the Great Depression, the Winsdsor facility of NAMCO was closed down. In 1989, the building was rehabilitated and currently hosts low-income housing.[2]
Architecture
The block is made of brick and has a flat roof. It is composed of nine identical four-storey buildings containing eight apartments each (two apartments at each floor), so that the whole complex contains seventy-two apartments. The buildings are separated by a fire wall. The main facade faces Union Street. The facade is separated into nine buildings as well, by using the bow fronts. Each individual building has an entrance from the main facade. Inside, the floors are connected by straight-run stairs. The building incorporates colonial revival features, including the red brick walls and flat-arched windows.[2]
Most of the apartments consist of a living room, a dining room, a bedroom, a kitchen and a bathroom. The fourth-floor apartments are slightly different and have two bedrooms each. Two of the apartments have been adapted for handicap access.[2]
References
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g "NAMCO Block". Connecticut River Joint Commissions. Retrieved 16 July 2012.
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Historic
Landmarks
- Calvin Coolidge Homestead District
- George Perkins Marsh Boyhood Home
- Robbins and Lawrence Armory and Machine Shop
- Stellafane Observatory
- Advent Camp Meeting Grounds Historic District
- Ascutney Mill Dam Historic District
- Ascutney State Park
- Bethel Village Historic District
- Theron Boyd Homestead
- Brigham Hill Historic District
- Brook Farm
- Chester Village Historic District
- Christian Street Rural Historic District
- Coolidge State Park
- Fletcher–Fullerton Farm
- Goodrich Four Corners Historic District
- Hartford Village Historic District
- Jericho Rural Historic District
- King Farm
- Ludlow Village Historic District
- Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park
- Gen. Lewis R. Morris House
- Norwich Mid-Century Modern Historic District
- Norwich Village Historic District
- Parker Hill Rural Historic District ‡
- Plymouth Historic District
- Quechee Historic Mill District
- Isaac M. Raymond Farm
- Saddlebow Farm
- Slayton–Morgan Historic District
- South Royalton Historic District
- South Woodstock Village Historic District
- Southview Housing Historic District
- Springfield Downtown Historic District
- Stockbridge Common Historic District
- Stone Village Historic District
- Taftsville Historic District
- Terraces Historic District
- Weathersfield Center Historic District
- West Hartford Village Historic District
- Weston Village Historic District
- White River Junction Historic District
- Wilder Village Historic District
- Wilgus State Park
- Windsor Village Historic District
- Woodstock Village Historic District
- Best's Covered Bridge
- Bowers Covered Bridge
- Bridge 15
- Bridgewater Corners Bridge
- Cornish–Windsor Covered Bridge‡
- Gilead Brook Bridge
- Gould's Mill Bridge
- Iron Bridge at Howard Hill Road
- Kendron Brook Bridge
- Lincoln Covered Bridge
- Martin's Mill Covered Bridge
- Ottauquechee River Bridge
- Quechee Gorge Bridge
- Spaulding Bridge
- Stockbridge Four Corners Bridge
- Taftsville Covered Bridge
- Upper Falls Covered Bridge
- West Hartford Bridge
- West Woodstock Bridge
- Willard Covered Bridge
- Woodstock Warren Through Truss Bridge