The Russ Building is a Neo-Gothic office tower located in the Financial District of San Francisco, California. It was designed by architect George W. Kelham, who was responsible for many of San Francisco's other prominent high-rise buildings in the 1920s.[6][7] The 133-metre (436 ft) building was completed in 1927 and had 32 floors as well as the city's first indoor parking garage. It was the tallest building in San Francisco from 1927 to 1964 and one of the most prominent, along with its 133-metre (436 ft) "twin", the PacBell Building to the south.[3]
| Russ Building | |
|---|---|
 Russ Building, 235 Montgomery St, San Francisco, CA 94104 | |
  Russ Building Location within San Francisco  Russ Building Russ Building (California)  Russ Building Russ Building (the United States) | |
| Alternative names | The Skyscraper |
| Record height | |
| Preceded by | Pacific Telephone Building |
| Surpassed by | Hartford Building |
| General information | |
| Status | Completed |
| Type | Commercial offices |
| Location | 235 Montgomery Street San Francisco, California |
| Coordinates | 37°47′28″N 122°24′10″W / 37.7912°N 122.4028°W |
| Completed | 1927 |
| Owner | The Swig Company |
| Management | Shorenstein Properties |
| Height | |
| Antenna spire | 132.6 m (435 ft) |
| Roof | 127.4 m (418 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 32[1] |
| Floor area | 511,329 sq ft (47,504.0 m2)[2] |
| Lifts/elevators | 15 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | George W. Kelham[1] |
| Structural engineer | H.J. Brunnier Associates |
| Main contractor | Dinwiddie Construction |
| References | |
| [3][4][5] | |
Upon completion, the building was iconic enough that Architect and Engineer wrote, “In nearly every large city there is one building that because of its size, beauty of architectural design and character of its use and occupancy, has come to typify the city itself ... Today the Russ Building takes this place in San Francisco. By its size and location and by the character of its tenants the building becomes indeed—'The Center of Western Progress'.”[8]
However, Manhattanization from 1960 to 1990 has shrouded the tower in a shell of skyscrapers, removing the tower's prominence.
The San Francisco Chronicle's architecture critic John King described the Russ Building as "the embodiment of Jazz Age romance, a full block of ornate Gothic-flavored masonry that ascends in jagged stages from Montgomery Street with a leap and then a scramble to a central crown".[1] The tower is a California Historical Landmark.[3]
Until the emergence of Sand Hill Road in the 1980s, many of the largest venture capital firms held offices in the Russ Building.[citation needed]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c King, John (2015). Cityscapes 2: Reading the Architecture of San Francisco. Heyday. ISBN 9781597143141.
- ^ "Russ Building". Skyscraper Center. CTBUH. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ a b c "Emporis building ID 118778". Emporis. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Russ Building". SkyscraperPage.
- ^ Russ Building at Structurae
- ^ "George W. Kelham | Companies". Emporis. Archived from the original on September 27, 2021. Retrieved 2022-05-03.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Russ Building (San Francisco, 1927)".
- ^ Corbett, Michael R (1979). Splendid survivors: San Francisco's downtown architectural heritage. San Francisco: California Living Books. ISBN 978-0-89395-031-6.
Further reading
edit- Woodbridge, Sally B. (1992). San Francisco Architecture (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Chronicle Books. pp. 27. ISBN 0-87701-897-9.