The name of the Flatiron building changed almost as much as the ownership changed over time. From 1916 on it was known as the Flatiron Building. From 1910 to 1916 the building was known as the Empire Life Building. The Flatiron building was known as the English-American building, since the English-American Loan and Trust company built it, until 1910. After the Flatiron was built the Empire building, Fourth National Bank building and the Chandler building followed closely after, which helped continue to thrust Atlanta into a new age of commercial growth. During these first years, the street floor contained a variety of businesses from retail (groceries, tea, meat) to a Western Union office, a florist, and a tailor.” The Flatiron building was a significant pioneer for the city of Atlanta. There were also many individual professional men such as doctors and lawyers. Heath & Co., Southern Bell, the Atlanta Society of Medicine, and National Cash Register Co. (elevators), Rand McNally Co., Mutual Life Insurance Co., D.C. Many companies also held spaces in the building, “including the English-American Co., architect Haralson Bleckley, Otis Bros. Many different professions had their offices within the Flatiron building, from doctors, dentists, architects, and lawyers. When the Flatiron building opened it was bustling with life and full of tenants. It was considered to be located on “one of the most valuable lots in the city,” which helped fill out the Flatiron building after being built.įlatiron Postcard #6. The Flatiron building was an important player in the city that helped spearhead Atlanta’s growth from another typical southern city into a developing city to be reckoned with. The building went through some renovations over time such as new layers of paint and remodeling of the original walls, but the Flatiron is still true to its original form and architectural distinction. Heavy limestone piers that separate the large bay windows that have been largely unaltered beautifully enclose the steel frame. It was built in the heart of Atlanta’s previous commercial district with a full steel skeleton and electric elevators, providing elegant offices and spaces for all kinds of businesses within the skyscraper. Gilbert and other designers, such as Lorenzo Wheeler who built the Kimball House Hotel in 1884 and Burnham and Root of Chicago who built the Equitable building in 1891, were brought down to meet the demand of the growing urban areas. The Flatiron building was designed by well-known 19th century New York architect Bradford Gilbert and it was built for the English-American Loan and Trust Company. The name Flatiron derives from the building’s prominent flatiron shape, which also helps it stand out amongst the other buildings around it that has surpassed it in height as Atlanta continued to grow. It is said that the Atlanta skyscraper was the first flatiron building in the United States. However another architect, Daniel Burnham and Company, built the Flatiron building in Atlanta four years before its New York look-alike. When most people hear the name Flatiron building, they immediately imagine the iconic 22-story skyscraper in New York City. Today its younger neighbors dwarf it, yet it is crowned as the oldest building in Atlanta.įlatiron Building, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, courtesy of Georgia State University, File AJCP552-044b. When it was erected the Flatiron building was the tallest skyscraper in Atlanta. The Flatiron building was built across what is now Woodruff park in 1897, the date that is carved over the main Peachtree Street entrance. On the corner of Peachtree Street NW, Poplar Street NW, and Broad Street NW sits an eleven-story building that catches the wandering gaze of university students, tourists, business people, and locals alike. One building in the district stands out amongst the rest. Directly northeast of Atlanta’s well-known Five Points, the Fairlie-Poplar Historic District has buildings that were built from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. The Fairlie-Poplar Historic District is an historic district of Atlanta that contains many of Atlanta’s oldest commercial and office buildings that are still in use today. Southeastern Sector of Fairlie-Poplar District, Atlanta 1931-1932, sheet 8, Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps.
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