The Drake Hotel, a historic 375-foot-tall, 33-story luxury hotel located at 1512–1514 Spruce Street at the corner of S. Hicks Street between S. 15th and S. 16th Streets in the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was built in 1928–29 by the Murphy, Quigley Company and was designed by the architectural firm of Ritter and Shay in the Art Deco style with Spanish Baroque terra cotta ornamentation on themes surrounding Sir Francis Drake, including "dolphins, shells, sailing vessels and globes." The building is topped by a terra cotta dome.[3]
Drake Hotel | |
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| Location | 1512-1514 Spruce St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°56′49″N 75°10′3″W / 39.94694°N 75.16750°W |
| Built | 1928 |
| Built by | Murphy, Quigley |
| Architect | Ritter & Shay, Eric Fisher Wood |
| Architectural style | Art Deco, Spanish Baroque |
| NRHP reference No. | 78002446[1] |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | September 18, 1978 |
| Designated PRHP | October 6, 1977[2] |
The building was originally proposed to be 28-stories, and the demolition work took place in April 1928. The first steel column was placed on site on September 1, 1928 and just four months later stunt reporter Vivian Shirley went to the top of the unfinished building on January 29, 1929. It was originally scheduled to open in June 1929, but the developers stated it was ready for occupancy on September 11, 1929.
The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 18, 1978. It was added to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places on October 6, 1977.[2] In 1998, the building was extensively renovated and converted to condominiums as "The Drake".
See also
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References
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- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ a b "PRHP: List of properties with OPA-compliant addresses" (PDF). Philadelphia Historical Commission. Retrieved 2013-07-03.[page needed]
- ^ Gallery, John Andrew, ed. (2004), Philadelphia Architecture: A Guide to the City (2nd ed.), Philadelphia: Foundation for Architecture, ISBN 0962290815, p.106
External links
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Media related to Drake Hotel (Philadelphia) at Wikimedia Commons- Official website
- Listing[usurped] at emporis.com
- Listing and photographs at Philadelphia Architects and Buildings
