Neighboring the border of
downtown Boston, the district didn't exist until the 1830s, when Boston's ground developments filled in the historic South Cove, allowing for the creation of both the district and Chinatown. Today, Leather District has evolved as a mixed-use district ever since the 1980s, and it currently has a range of business and household occupants, and seems more like New York City than virtually every other Boston neighborhood. It is home to the city's most homogeneous 119th-century-style architecture displays and large corporations including America's second oldest financial institution, ”The State Street Corporations". The district is also home to several working professionals, and its inhabitants are liberal with above-average public schools.
It was first created as a residential suburb, but following the Great Boston Fire in 1872, which destroyed the city's industrial core and resulted in the implementation of stricter industrial fire laws, the place then became the city’s hub of shoe and leather industry. The buildings built in this region between the 1880s and 1920 exemplify these restrictions, as well as the leather makers' need to maximize their workspace. Presently, the buildings and space have been converted to commercial and residential spaces while preserving its architectural patterns.