10-16 State Street

History

The Marine Society Building, located at 10–16 State Street, is a three-story, side-gabled brick structure with an asphalt-shingled roof and two tall brick chimneys rising from the front roof slope. The brickwork is laid in Flemish bond, and a bracketed brick cornice ornaments the façade. The building was once covered in mastic, which was removed in 1902.

The first floor features three storefronts articulated in a trabeated form with granite sills and lintels. Each storefront is accessed through double glass-and-wood doors topped by 4x2-light transoms, flanked by 3x2-light windows above wooden panels. The second bay from the south end features an open passageway that leads to the pedestrian mall at the rear of the building.

The upper two stories exhibit a slightly irregular fenestration pattern with a 1-3-4 bay rhythm. Each window opening contains a 6-over-6 wooden sash capped with splayed sandstone lintels and plain sandstone sills, some of which are in-kind replacements. Between the second and third stories, a recessed rectangular tablet with flared corners bears the inscription: “Marine Society of Newburyport, Founded 1772.”

Historic photographs from the early 20th century show that at that time, two pairs of second-story windows had been replaced with tripartite picture windows, and the storefronts had been remodeled. The original fenestration pattern and storefront configuration have since been restored, returning the building closer to its historic appearance.

Like its neighboring structures, the Marine Society Building is believed to have been constructed shortly after the Great Fire of 1811, which destroyed much of what is now downtown Newburyport. According to a “Reminiscences” article published in the Daily News in 1886, sixty to seventy years earlier, the building had housed several dry goods stores — including those of Abraham Wheelwright, Moses Davenport, William Thompson, and Benjamin Poore. By 1849, Porter and Byron operated a dry goods store at 10 State Street, Osborn’s Saloon occupied 12 State Street, and William Palmer ran a dry goods business at 14 State Street.

In 1851, the estate of Abraham Wheelwright sold the three-story building to the Marine Society of Newburyport for $3,000. Soon after, the Society made repairs and alterations to the upper stories to accommodate its meetings. One room was used as a museum to display the Society’s collection of gifts and artifacts, many of which had been brought from foreign lands by its members.

Founded in 1772, the Marine Society of Newburyport established a fund to benefit members in need. Over time, it not only supported unfortunate mariners and their families but also became an influential authority on maritime matters — interpreting pilot laws and advising the federal government on suitable locations for lighthouses and buoys. By the early 20th century, however, declining membership led the Society to sell the building. Much of its collection is now displayed at the Custom House Maritime Museum.

By the 1860s, city directories referred to the meeting hall at 14 State Street as “Concert Hall.” Over the years, this upper-story hall served numerous purposes, including as a dance school and later as the Greek American Club from the 1940s through the 1960s.

The first-floor storefronts have hosted a variety of commercial tenants. In 1869, Knight & Pierce, tailors, occupied 10 State Street, while the First National Bank operated from 16 State Street. By 1890, C.C. Stockman ran a furniture store at 10 State Street. From the 1930s through the 1950s, the space at 12 State Street housed grocery businesses — first the New Public Market and later Scott’s Public Market.

By 1967, the building had been vacant for many years and was acquired as part of Newburyport’s Urban Renewal program. Before its rehabilitation, the façade had been painted, the original 6-over-6 windows replaced with 2-over-2 sash, and the storefronts modernized. The Restoration Design Group of Portsmouth restored the building in the 1970s as part of Parcel 10, returning it to a closer approximation of its 19th-century appearance.