Boston Custom House

The Custom House in Boston, Massachusetts, was established in the 17th century and stood near the waterfront in several successive locations through the years. In 1849 the U.S. federal government constructed a neoclassical building on State Street; it remains the "Custom House" known to Bostonians today. A tower was added in 1915; the building joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and was designated a Boston Landmark by the Boston Landmarks Commission in 1986.

The Royal Commissioners of Customs administered customs in Boston during the colonial period. In the late 17th century, the customhouse was located at the waterfront, on the corner of Richmond St. and Ann St."

At the time of the Boston Massacre in 1770, it was located on King Street, very near the Old State House. Private Hugh White was on sentry guard duty. Paul Revere's illustration of the massacre depicts the customhouse (along the right-most edge of the picture).

After the revolution, the customhouse remained on State Street. Employees included Thomas Melvill (1786–1820). In 1810 it moved into a new building on Custom House Street (between Broad St. and India St.). In the 1830s American author Nathaniel Hawthorne worked there.

A new site on State Street was purchased by the federal government on September 13, 1837. Construction of a custom house was authorized by U.S. President Andrew Jackson. When it was completed in 1849, it cost about $1,076,000, in contemporary U.S. currency, including the site, foundations, etc.

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