Four buildings in Boston, Massachusetts, have been known as the "John Hancock Building." All were built by the John Hancock Insurance companies. References to the John Hancock building usually refer to the 60-story, sleek glass building on Clarendon Street also known as the John Hancock Tower or Hancock Place.
176–178 Devonshire Street
The first John Hancock Building was built on Devonshire Street in 1891. It was designed by William G. Preston. On October 2, 1919, the building was purchased by the First National Bank of Boston. In 1922, it was one of the buildings torn down to make way for the new First National Bank building. This building was torn down in 1971 and replaced by One Federal Street.
120 Franklin Street, Stone & Webster Building
In 1909, John Hancock began work on a new addition to the building on the corner of Franklin and Devonshire Streets. The addition was designed by Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge in the French Renaissance architecture style. The "H type" design allowed for almost every office to have outside windows. Each floor contained marble flooring and wainscoting as well as a fireproof bank vault. The Wells Bros. Co. of New York City were the general contractors. John Hancock occupied the top three floors of the ten-story building and the Library Bureau, Eliot National Bank of Boston, and E. H. Rollins & Sons were among the first tenants. The addition gave the building frontage on Devonshire Street (176–200 Devonshire St.), Franklin Street (120 Franklin St.), and Federal Street (49–75 Federal Street). On January 3, 1920, the remainder of the building was purchased by Massachusetts Trust Company, which renamed it the Massachusetts Trust Company Building. In 1926 the building was purchased by Stone & Webster and became known as the Stone & Webster Building. In 1965, the First National Bank purchased the building with plans to construct their new headquarters there. The Stone & Webster Building was torn down once Stone & Webster moved out. The property was acquired by National Shawmut Bank, which constructed a temporary building to aid in their transition to One Federal Street. The temporary building was torn down and replaced by One Federal Street. In 1977, the American Institute of Architects presented the firm with a National Honor Award for the building, and in 2011 conferred on it the Twenty-five Year Award. It has been the tallest building in Boston for more than 30 years and is the tallest building in New England.
601 Congress Street
thumb|left|200px|Construction site of [[Manulife building (601 Congress Street), taken 2003.]]
In 2002, Manulife Financial began construction of a 14-story building in the Seaport District at 601 Congress Street (Picture). The building was designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP of Chicago, designers of the John Hancock Center in Chicago and the Sears Tower, also in Chicago. The building features a "green" (energy-efficient) dual glass curtain wall construction, making it among the first buildings in Boston to win national LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification.
On April 28, 2004, the then-head of Manulife's Boston operations announced that the building would be renamed the "John Hancock Building." According to Manulife, this is not quite correct; the building, completed in fall of 2004, will house the John Hancock Wealth Management Group and will bear conspicuous "John Hancock" exterior and interior signage featuring the John Hancock logo. However, the company will refer to the building simply as "601 Congress."
, Emporis lists the official name of the building as the "Manulife Tower".