Empire Building: Difference between revisions

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On [[January 30]], [[1917]] a crowd of thousands assembled in the streets to witness Harry "The Human Fly" Gardiner climbing the exterior of the Empire Building. A photograph from the event shows a [[Greene Drug Company]], a Rexall-affiliated pharmacy, occupying the ground-floor corner location, [[Richter Co. Tailers]] on the third-floor, and the offices of the [[Birmingham Motor Speedway Company]] on the fourth floor. A [[1934]] ad claims that the [[Birmingham Firemen's Relief Association]] located in the Empire Building because of its convenience.
On [[January 30]], [[1917]] a crowd of thousands assembled in the streets to witness Harry "The Human Fly" Gardiner climbing the exterior of the Empire Building. A photograph from the event shows a [[Greene Drug Company]], a Rexall-affiliated pharmacy, occupying the ground-floor corner location, [[Richter Co. Tailers]] on the third-floor, and the offices of the [[Birmingham Motor Speedway Company]] on the fourth floor. A [[1934]] ad claims that the [[Birmingham Firemen's Relief Association]] located in the Empire Building because of its convenience.


In [[1965]] the building was purchased and renovated for the newly-formed [[City National Bank]], who renamed it the '''City National Bank Building'''. It is now the downtown headquarters of [[Colonial Bank]].
In [[1965]] the building was purchased and renovated for the newly-formed [[City National Bank]], who renamed it the '''City National Bank Building'''.  
 
Until the demise of Colonial Bank in 2009, the financial institution had a branch on the ground floor of the building.  [[Colonial Bank]].
 
The building is now vacant.


In [[1982]] the Empire Building was added to the [[List of Buildings on the National Register of Historic Places|National Register of Historic Places]].  
In [[1982]] the Empire Building was added to the [[List of Buildings on the National Register of Historic Places|National Register of Historic Places]].  

Revision as of 19:30, 9 April 2012

This article is about the 16-story downtown tower. For other uses, see Empire Building (disambiguation).
Photo from the southeast across 1st Avenue North.

The Empire Building is a 16-story, 247 foot tall classical revival style skyscraper at 1928 1st Avenue North on the northwest corner of its intersection with 20th Street. It was erected on the former site of the Bank Saloon in 1909. When it was built, it was the tallest building in Alabama. Within four years that honor was passed to the American Trust and Savings Bank Building on the opposite corner, creating what became known as the Heaviest Corner on Earth.

The Empire Building was developed by the Empire Improvement Company, which was headed by Robert Jemison. The construction was financed in part by a mortgage loan from the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, the first such deal made by an insurer for development.

Though local architects William T. Warren and William Leslie Welton are usually credited with the design, it is more likely that J. E. R. Carpenter of the New York firm of Carpenter and Blair acted as the lead designer with Warren and Welton, young architects who arrived in Birmingham in 1907, as associates supervising the details of construction. (Alexander - 1986) The contractor was T. C. Thompson & Brothers, represented locally by superintendent Frederick Larkin.

The entire facade is executed in molded terra-cotta. The elaborate and colorful glazed terra-cotta cornice features a repeating shield motif of large white capital "E"s, representing the developer. The arched niches above the paired windows in the upper story feature sculpted busts of allegorical figures. Larkin (as Frederick the Great) and Welton (as Emperor William) appear among them. The 1st Avenue entrance is flanked by monumental pink granite Doric columns.

The construction period was documented in monthly photographs by the Birmingham View Company. The foundations had been set by January 15, 1909. The first column of the 16th floor was in place in mid-March. By May 15 the terra-cotta cladding was installed, and a month later visible construction was nearing an end.

On January 30, 1917 a crowd of thousands assembled in the streets to witness Harry "The Human Fly" Gardiner climbing the exterior of the Empire Building. A photograph from the event shows a Greene Drug Company, a Rexall-affiliated pharmacy, occupying the ground-floor corner location, Richter Co. Tailers on the third-floor, and the offices of the Birmingham Motor Speedway Company on the fourth floor. A 1934 ad claims that the Birmingham Firemen's Relief Association located in the Empire Building because of its convenience.

In 1965 the building was purchased and renovated for the newly-formed City National Bank, who renamed it the City National Bank Building.

Until the demise of Colonial Bank in 2009, the financial institution had a branch on the ground floor of the building. Colonial Bank.

The building is now vacant.

In 1982 the Empire Building was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Preceded by:
Bank Saloon 		1928 1st Avenue North
1909 - present 		Succeeded by:
current

Tenants

References

  • Alexander, James Rodger. (1986) Terra Cotta Facades of Birmingham Architecture. Exhibition catalog. Birmingham: UAB Visual Arts Gallery.
  • Jefferson County Historical Commission. (1998) Birmingham and Jefferson County, Alabama Images of America Series. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0752413465
  • Lewis, Pierce. (1996) Birmingham View: Through the Years in Photographs Birmingham: Birmingham Historical Society. ISBN 0943994217
  • Satterfield, Carolyn Green. (1976) Historic Sites of Jefferson County, Alabama. Prepared for the Jefferson County Historical Commission. Birmingham: Gray Printing Co.
  • White, Marjorie Longenecker, ed. (1977) Downtown Birmiingham: Architectural and Historical Walking Tour Guide. Birmingham: Birmingham Historical Society.
  • "Timepiece" (January 2007) Birmingham Magazine.

External links

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