Built 1809 (1809) Opened 1809 Added to NRHP 20 March 1973 | NRHP Reference # 73000172 Area 1,200 m² | |
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Location 8 Islington St., Portsmouth, New Hampshire Similar Water Country, Strawbery Banke, The Music Hall, USS Albacore (AGSS‑569), South Meetinghouse | ||
Portsmouth academy building top 9 facts
The Portsmouth Academy building is a historic academic and civic building at 8 Islington Street in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It presently houses Discover Portsmouth, a local tourism marketing organization. It is a two-story brick structure that was designed by local designer-builder James Nutter and built in 1809 to house the Portsmouth Academy, a college preparatory school. Its Federal style resembles other academy buildings (including an early building at the Phillips Exeter Academy), and its design was for a time attributed to Charles Bulfinch.
The building was acquired by the city and converted for use to house the Portsmouth Public Library in the 1890s. At this time its interior was extensively altered; the extant skylights were probably added at this time as well. In 1954 a brick connector joined this building to the adjacent Benedict House. The building served as the public library until 2006, when the library moved to a new facility at 175 Parrott Avenue. The buildings are now leased to the Portsmouth Historical Society, which operates the Discover Portsmouth center.
The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 as "Portsmouth Public Library".