Built in 1908, it is a significant Renaissance Revival work by the local architect George P. B. Alderman, and for its association with the E.H. Friedrich Company, a manufacturer of metal architectural parts.

[1] The Friedrich Block occupies a prominent location in downtown Holyoke, at the northwest corner of Main and Sargent Streets.

The ground floor is finished mainly in dressed brownstone, although it as also been significantly altered by its commercial tenants over the years.

The building has undergone only modest alterations over the years, principally by the commercial tenants on the ground floor.

The apartments, which housed an ethnic diversity of primarily factory workers, saw significant wear as well as damage from vandalism.