Prudential Tower
In 1964 this was the tallest building in North America outside New York City — and the tower next door only exists because of it.
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When the Pru opened in 1964 it ranked tenth-tallest on Earth, ended the Custom House Tower's 59-year reign over Boston's skyline, and so thoroughly overshadowed the John Hancock headquarters that the rival insurer commissioned its own taller tower in 1975. One building, two skylines — the Pru's competition reflex shaped everything you see around it. Designed by Charles Luckman and Associates for Prudential Insurance, it still holds second place in Boston by roof height.
What to look for
- The radio mast that lifts the pinnacle from 749 feet to 907 feet — nearly 160 feet of steel above the roof
- The John Hancock Tower just to the north, built in 1975 as a direct competitive reply to being dwarfed by the Pru
- The unbroken international-style slab — 52 floors of Charles Luckman's 1960s corporate geometry, no setbacks
The tower anchors the Prudential Center complex, which holds 1.2 million sq ft of retail and commercial space — useful for a dry-weather shortcut across the Back Bay.
Prudential Tower is one of 31 sights worth the detour in Boston, all bundled offline in Voyage GO — download the Boston pack and it sits on your map with no signal, filling your travel passport the moment you walk past.
More to see in Boston
- Museum of Fine Arts BostonFour hundred and fifty thousand works of art under one roof — one of the most comprehensive collections in the Americas.
- TD GardenThe subway stops underneath it — TD Garden is built directly above MBTA's North Station, so you step off the train and you are already at the door.
- Harvard College ObservatoryOn the night of July 16-17, 1850, astronomers here made the first daguerreotype of a star — Vega — through a telescope that was the largest in North America.
- Fenway ParkThe oldest active ballpark in MLB, where a cramped city block accidentally invented some of baseball's most famous features.
- Isabella Stewart Gardner MuseumIn 1990, thieves walked out with thirteen works worth $500 million — none have ever come back, and the case is still open.
- Boston Public LibraryJohn Adams' personal 3,800-volume library lives here — and any Massachusetts adult can walk in and access it.