Newspaper Row (Boston)
Newspaper Row is a historic district in downtown Boston, located along Washington Street, Milk Street, and Hawley Street. In its heyday—from the late 1800s to the early 1940s—the area housed many of Boston’s newspapers and was a lively hub of news, chatter, and crowds. News came not only in the papers’ pages but also on blackboards and megaphones outside the offices, as people rushed to read the latest telegraphic updates on big events like elections, fights, and the World Series.
Originally the Row ran between State and Water Streets in the financial district, but as the city grew nearer to Washington Street, the papers moved closer to the center. By the early 1900s, papers were located at various addresses around Washington Street: the Boston Globe at 244 Washington; the Boston Evening Transcript at 324 Washington (Milk Street); the Boston Post at 261 Washington; the Boston Journal at 264 Washington; the Boston American at 80-82 Summer Street; and the Associated Press at 293 Washington. Other outlets like the Boston Herald and Boston Traveler were nearby.
Newspaper Row was not only a newsroom but a social crossroads. Reporters, politicians, lawyers, bankers, cops, and even bookmakers and bootleggers mingled at nearby spots like Thompson’s Spa, trading ideas and scoops. The street would also fill with crowds during major events, as people gathered to hear bulletins announced to the crowd or posted on blackboards. The Row also hosted promotions and public spectacles, such as suffrage gatherings in 1909 and a 1914 elephant parade after the Boston Post funded elephants for Franklin Park Zoo.
With the rise of radio, people no longer needed to stand on Washington Street for updates, and crowds dwindled. The Boston Globe was the last to leave Newspaper Row in May 1958. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, and in 2003 a historical marker was placed at the Globe’s former home at 244 Washington Street.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 18:59 (CET).