Koppers Tower

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Koppers Building
Koppers and Gulf Towers, 2015-06-20. 01.jpg
Koppers Building (left) and Gulf Tower, 2015
Koppers Tower
General information
TypeOffices
Location436 Seventh Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Coordinates 40°26′31″N79°59′44″W / 40.44194°N 79.99556°W / 40.44194; -79.99556
Construction started1927
CompletedMarch, 1929
Cost$5.3 million
($90.3 million today)
Height
Roof475 ft (145 m)
Technical details
Floor count34
Floor area290,464 sq ft (26,985 m2)
Lifts/elevators13
Design and construction
Architect(s) Graham, Anderson, Probst & White with E. P. Mellon
Developer Andrew W. Mellon
Main contractorMellon-Stuart
Designated1973 [1]

Koppers Building is a historical building in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, commissioned by Andrew W. Mellon and completed in 1929. The building is named after the Koppers Chemical Corporation and is one of the major features of Downtown Pittsburgh.

Contents

Overview

Koppers Building was completed in March 1929, and it has 34 floors at a cost of $5.3 million (equivalent to $90.3 million in 2022). [2] It rises 475 feet (145 m) above Downtown Pittsburgh. Its address is Grant Street & Seventh Avenue. It is the best example of Art Deco construction and ornamentation in Pittsburgh. [3]

It is constructed with Indiana limestone with a polished granite base and dark copper roof. Inside the Koppers Building the lobby is richly decorated with marble walls. Its copper roof is pitched in a chateau-like design and is illuminated at night. The building was designed by the architectural firm of Graham, Anderson, Probst & White.

In February 1948, Equitable of New York purchased the building for $6 million (equivalent to $78.6 million in 2022). [4]

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Grant Street is the main government and business corridor in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is home to the global headquarters of U.S. Steel, Koppers Chemicals, and Oxford Development. It also is home to the seat of Allegheny County, City of Pittsburgh and the regional Federal Government offices. It is part of the Pittsburgh Central Downtown Historic District.

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References

  1. Historic Landmark Plaques 1968-2009 (PDF). Pittsburgh, PA: Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation. 2010. Retrieved July 2, 2010.
  2. Gannon, Joyce (November 14, 2004). "As Koppers Building marks 75 years, the iconic structure also marks changes in region". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Archived from the original on May 5, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
  3. Conti, John (May 4, 2013). "Art Deco style survives in Pittsburgh — if you look around". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review . Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  4. "Koppers Building Chronology". Historic Pittsburgh. University of Pittsburgh . Retrieved November 26, 2017.

Further reading

Preceded by Pittsburgh Skyscrapers by Height
475 feet (145 m)
35 floors
Succeeded by
Preceded by Pittsburgh Skyscrapers by Year of Completion
1929
Succeeded by