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The Langham, Boston
Boston, Massachusetts, United States · Langham · Grand Luxury
R. Clipston Sturgis modeled the 1922 Federal Reserve Bank of Boston on Rome's Palazzo della Cancelleria, complete with granite base and equestrian statues. Norman Leventhal converted the Boston Landmark into Hotel Meridien in 1981; Langham took over on 31 December 2003. After a full closure for renovation it reopened 30 June 2021 with The Fed pub and GRANA, the old vault now a pastry kitchen.
- 318 rooms
- Opened 1981
- Neighborhood: Financial District
- Rooms from 275 sq ft (26 m²)
- Architect: Hugh Stubbins & Associates
About The Langham, Boston
- N. C. Wyeth murals still hang in the Wyeth Room, once the Governor's Reception Room of the bank.
- Original Pearl Street entry doors retain gold coin moldings from the Federal Reserve era.
- Narrow ground-floor windows were designed to discourage bank intruders and remain part of the facade.
- Designated a Boston Landmark in 1978 before the hotel conversion.
- Pacific Eagle Holdings bought the hotel in 1997 for $100 million, then switched management from Le Méridien to Langham.
History
The building at 250 Franklin Street was constructed in 1922 as the permanent headquarters of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Designed by R. Clipston Sturgis, one of Boston's most accomplished architects and president of the American Institute of Architects from 1914 to 1915, the structure is a pronounced example of the Renaissance Revival style that characterized the city's Financial District in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Sturgis modeled the exterior on the High Renaissance Italian palazzo tradition, wrapping the building in limestone with a rusticated granite ground floor and four-over-four bronze window sash that gave it an appropriately imposing image of security and permanence. Inside, he created a memorable sequence of ceremonial spaces: the Members Court, a barrel-vaulted, clerestory-lit room reached by travertine steps; and the Main Banking Lobby, with its gilded coffered ceiling, pedimented door frames, and wall murals painted by N. C. Wyeth — one of America's most celebrated illustrators.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston occupied the building for more than half a century. In the early 1940s, plans were drawn for a complementary addition, designed by the distinguished French-born architect Paul Philippe Cret. Cret died in 1945 before construction was complete, and the addition was finished in 1953 by his successor firm in collaboration with the Boston practice of Kilham, Hopkins, Greeley and Brodie. The result was a harmonious ensemble — two buildings of different periods that spoke the same formal architectural language, occupying the full block between Pearl, Franklin, Oliver, and Milk Streets near Post Office Square.
The Boston Fed vacated the building on January 1, 1978, having completed its move to new headquarters at 600 Atlantic Avenue. The abandoned complex, declared a Boston Landmark in the 1980s, stood as one of the most significant adaptive-reuse opportunities in the city. In the early 1980s, Jung/Brannen Associates converted the 1922 Sturgis building into a hotel, adding a multilevel glass mansard and attaching a tower — a transformation that opened the property as Hotel Meridien Boston in 1981. The banking hall was reinterpreted as a grand hotel lobby, and the ornate executive spaces became event rooms.
In 2003, new management rebranded the property as The Langham, Boston, aligning it with the international luxury hotel group. The hotel has since undergone multiple rounds of renovation, most significantly a sweeping two-year restoration that culminated in a 2021 reopening — a project that returned the building's historic architectural details to their original luster while integrating thoroughly contemporary amenities. The former bank's grand hall became the setting for a refined Italian restaurant, its coffered ceilings and marble columns providing a backdrop that no purpose-built dining room could replicate.
The Langham, Boston was recognized with Two MICHELIN Keys in 2025, a designation that acknowledges both the quality of the hotel experience and the significance of the setting — a protected Boston Landmark on one of the Financial District's most distinguished blocks, still carrying the weight of its original purpose in every proportion and ornament.
The setting
The Langham, Boston occupies 250 Franklin Street in Boston's Financial District in a 1922 Renaissance Revival building designed by R. Clipston Sturgis after Rome's Palazzo della Cancelleria, originally the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. The granite-clad landmark features life-size equestrian statues and a painted dome ceiling; it was designated a Boston Landmark in 1978 and converted to a hotel in 1981. Faneuil Hall Marketplace is seven minutes on foot and the New England Aquarium eight minutes, placing guests in the city's historic commercial core. The building's Federal Reserve heritage — evoked in the on-site bar The Fed — lends a grandeur that few hotel addresses in downtown Boston can match. 4 miles from Logan International Airport.
Restaurants and bars
- Grana — Restaurant
- The Fed — Restaurant
Experiences
- The Langham Club — Exclusive lounge privileges for Club Room and Suite guests, with full breakfast, afternoon treats and evening cocktails and light dinner.
- Weekend sit-down brunch at Grana — Sit-down brunch at Grana every Saturday and Sunday, 12:00pm to 2:00pm, serving Italian family-style dishes.
- Rose Garden Terrace al fresco dining — Al fresco dining and cocktails at The Fed's Rose Garden Terrace, open daily, weather depending.
- Craft Cocktail Experience — Craft cocktail experience offered as a gift option at the hotel.
- Long Term Stays — Extended-stay offering for business engagements, university programs, medical care, or leisurely city visits.
- Freedom Trail — Stroll the Freedom Trail, one of the family adventures in Boston highlighted by the hotel.
Amenities
- Indoor pool
- Sauna
- Hot tub
- Fitness center
- Pet-friendly
Awards
- AAA Four Diamond (2026)
- Forbes Travel Guide Recommended (2026)
- MICHELIN Two Keys (2026)
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