• Housed the influential publishing arm of the Lutheran Church in New England
• Great potential as interpretation center for site's many historic uses
• Building is neglected and MDC has deferred plans for preservation and reuse as a visitor center
Historic Boston Incorporated 1999 Preservation Revolving Fund Casebook : Property
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| Print Shop at Brook Farm | West Roxbury |
| • Last standing historic
building on the Brook Farm Reservation • Housed the influential publishing arm of the Lutheran Church in New England • Great potential as interpretation center for site's many historic uses • Building is neglected and MDC has deferred plans for preservation and reuse as a visitor center |
|
| Name: Print Shop at Brook Farm | Bldg SqFt: 3,263 | Lot SqFt: In 148-acre state reservation | |
| Address: 670 Baker Street | Ward: 20 | Parcel: 8964 | |
| Neighborhood: West Roxbury | Zoning: Parkland Open Space Subdistrict (OS-P) | ||
| Year Built: c. 1890 | Use: Vacant | ||
| Style: Victorian vernacular | Condition: Poor | ||
| Architect(s): Unknown | Owner: Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Metropolitan District Commission |
||
| Historic Certification: Brook Farm National Historic Landmark and Boston Landmark; National Register listed | |||
| FY99 Building Assessment: N/A FY02 Building Assessment: N/A |
FY99 Tax: N/A FY02 Tax: N/A |
||
| FY99 Land Assessment: $9,430,900 FY02 Land Assessment: N/A |
Tax Status: Exempt | ||
Preservation Strategy:
MDC should undertake an historic structures report on the Lutheran Print Shop to document in detail the historic significance of the building, determine the full extent of its preservation needs, and provide guidance on the viability of rehabilitating the building as a headquarters and interpretive center for the Brook Farm Reservation.
Significance:
The simple, wood frame Lutheran Print Shop served as headquarters for the publishing arm of the Association of the Evangelical Lutheran Church for Works of Mercy. The Association's press dominated German Lutheran publishing in New England into the 1920s and played an important role in facilitating intellectual and philosophical exchange among various church bodies. The print shop stands on the site of the Brook Farm Institute of Agriculture and Education, the utopian community and cooperative farm founded in 1841 by New England Transcendentalists. After its demise in 1848, Brook Farm served as a poor farm in the 1850s and as a training ground for Union soldiers during the Civil War. Gottlieb F. Burkhardt, a German immigrant and wealthy Boston brewer, purchased the property in 1870 for the Lutheran Association, which used the land to establish the Martin Luther Orphans Home and Gethsemane Cemetery.
Preservation Challenges:
The Metropolitan District Commission has operated Brook Farm primarily as a natural reservation since it acquired the 150-acre property in the 1980s. The print shop is the last extant building at the reservation associated with any of the various historic uses of the property, from utopian community through Civil War camp to Lutheran orphanage. The full preservation needs of the Lutheran Print Shop are undocumented, although the building is obviously neglected and in deteriorated condition. A temporary roof has begun to fail and water infiltration has once again become a concern. MDC has deferred plans for the preservation of the Lutheran Print Shop as a visitor center, although there is great support from MDC staff, the Boston Landmarks Commission, and others in the preservation community for reuse of the building as an interpretive center. MDC reportedly lacks funds for such use.
Neighborhood Context:
Brook Farm Reservation retains its rural character at the far western extent of the city of Boston. Several large cemeteries surround the reservation, enhancing the openness and solitude that have always made the site so appealing to its many institutional users. The Lutheran Print Shop stands isolated on a hill in an unimproved area near the entrance to Gethsemane Cemetery. MDC maintenance trucks park beside the building.
Other Sources of Information:
BLC report on the potential designation of Brook Farm, Aug. 1977
Entry Completed: 05/21/1999
The MDC budgeted money in FY02 to commission a Historic Structures Report as a first step towards the reuse of the Print Shop, but the MDC never released a Request for Proposals. At this time it is not known if the MDC will transfer the money into its FY03 budget.Update Entry Completed: 08/14/2002