Window Dressing

From Dave Brigham:

I used to walk by the Dainty Dot Hosiery building a lot. I worked in the mail room of a small banking and real estate publishing company in Boston's Leather District, just a few blocks from the late 19th century building, which is on the National Register of Historic Places.

On occasion, I made deliveries on foot, walking through the Financial District, along the waterfront, through Chinatown and, quickly and with eyes in the back of my head, among the pimps and prostitutes of the Combat Zone (R.I.P.).

The Dainty Dot building was on the edge of Chinatown, facing Surface Road, which separated the ethnic enclave from the smaller Leather District. I loved the character of the building -- rich, brown bricks, nice details at the top, a real solid place of industry -- and of course I thrilled at the name on the side.

Unfortunately, the building was recently torn down. A developer has finally begun to realize a plan to build a 26-story residential tower after years of financing issues.

For more about the history of the Dainty Dot building, and the former Shreve, Crump & Low building in Boston's Back Bay, read this post from the Evolving Critic blog.