Woolworth Building

Cass Gilbert
1911-13



This famous skyscraper, 792 feet tall, was commissioned by Frank W. Woolworth, the owner of the five and dime chain. It has a "U"-shaped plan with a 29-story mass at the bottom and with a 30-story square tower rising from the center of the front. The whole is sheathed with cream-colored terra cotta. Details in the entrance, the setbacks, and top borrow from Gothic architecture. See also the Chicago Tribune Tower for a later Gothic revival skyscraper.

 

The front facade and "Gothic" details of the entrance

 
 

The shaft, setback, and top

 
The building was nick-named early the "Cathedral of Commerce," a cognomen clearly justified by the interior lobby with vaulted mosaic-covered ceilings and a profusion of Neo-Gothic details.

The "Gothic" lobby




Other buildings by Cass Gilbert on this site include: Allen Memorial Art Museum (Oberlin), Bosworth Hall/Fairchild Chapel (Oberlin), Cox Administration Bulding (Oberlin), and Finney Chapel (Oberlin).


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