F.N. Burt Company Factory
The F.N. Burt Company Factory is an industrial building in Buffalo constructed around 1901 and expanded through the mid-1920s. The structure combines brick walls with steel framing and concrete sections, featuring large windows designed to light the production floors.
The factory was founded in 1886 by Frederick Northrup Burt as a small printing operation and expanded after 1900 into large-scale cardboard box manufacturing. Mary Rebecca Cass led the company from 1909 to 1935, transforming it into the world's largest paper box maker of its time.
The factory bears the name of its founder Frederick Northrup Burt and reflects Buffalo's industrial identity. It was a central workplace where thousands of workers, mostly women, produced boxes for well-known consumer brands and products.
The site is located on Seneca Street and covers nearly an entire city block, making it visible from the road. The scale and height of the building can feel overwhelming, so viewing the entire facade from different angles helps capture its scope.
The company invented a paper cup dispenser for water coolers and later sold this innovation to other businesses. This invention shows how factory innovation extended beyond box making into entirely new products.
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