Abel C. Martin

In early life, at the insistence of his father, he learned a trade, but finding the work not to his liking, and chose to study engineering instead.

[2] In 1854 he enrolled in the Lawrence Scientific School of Harvard University, graduating in 1856 with the degree of B. S. He then entered the office of Arthur Gilman, a successful Boston architect who was then engaged on the designing of the Back Bay.

His engagement on this project left little time for the instruction of the young men in his office, so Martin had to learn quickly.

[4] Martin led the BSA's efforts to regulate building construction in Boston, and in 1870 some of these were passed.

[8] Martin's First Church in Cambridge is one of his largest surviving works, and has been cited for its quality by writers such as Henry-Russell Hitchcock in his study of H. H. Richardson and his influences,[9] and by Keith N. Morgan in his survey of the architecture of metropolitan Boston.