Turk's Head Building

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Turk's Head Building
Turk's Head Building, Providence RI.jpg
Turk's Head Building
General information
TypeOffice
LocationWestminster and Weybosset Streets,
Providence, RI 02903, United States
Coordinates 41°49′28.42″N71°24′35.5″W / 41.8245611°N 71.409861°W / 41.8245611; -71.409861
Completed1913
Height
Roof215 ft (66 m)
Technical details
Floor count16
Design and construction
Architect Howells & Stokes
Developer Brown Land Co.

The Turk's Head Building is a 16-story office high-rise in Providence, Rhode Island completed in 1913. The Turk's Head Building surpassed the 1901 Union Trust Company Building to become the tallest building in downtown. The building retained that title until 1922, when the Providence Biltmore was completed. It is one of the oldest skyscrapers in Providence, standing 215 ft (66 m) tall. It is currently the 11th-tallest building in Providence. [1]

Contents

History

The building is designed in a V-shape, and architectural historian William McKenzie Woodward asserts that the architects "clearly had in mind Daniel Burnham's Flatiron Building" in New York City. [1] The skyscraper's peculiar name dates back to the early nineteenth century, when shopkeeper Jacob Whitman mounted a ship's figurehead above his store. The figurehead came from the ship Sultan and depicted the head of an Ottoman warrior. Whitman's store was called "At the sign of the Turk's Head". The figurehead was lost in a storm, but today a stone replica is found on the building's third floor façade. [2]

Brothers Evan and Lloyd Granoff bought the building in 1997 for $4.2 million and spent $3 million renovating it; they sold it in 2008 for $17.55 million to FB Capital Partners. [3] The Granoffs had not been actively trying to sell the building; their attorney advisor said that they accepted the deal because the sum offered was well over its worth.

Tenants

The building is known for the longevity of its tenants. It is home to at least two tenants which have operated in the building for over a century. The investment firm Brown, Lisle/Cummings Inc., and the law firm Gardner, Sawyer, Gates & Sloan both opened their doors in 1913 and kept offices in the building for a century. [4]

References

  1. 1 2 Woodward, Wm McKenzie. "Guide to Providence Architecture. 1st ed. 2003: United States. ISBN   0-9742847-0-X. p. 81
  2. ↑ "Turk's Head Building". Emporis.com. Archived from the original on May 28, 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
  3. ↑ Grimaldi, Paul (2008-03-01). "Turk's Head Building sold". The Providence Journal . Retrieved 2008-03-07.
  4. ↑ Souza, Michael (20 April 2013). "A century in the heart of downtown". Providence Business News. Retrieved 13 February 2016.


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