Philadelphia Bourse

Philadelphia Bourse Building

(2014)
Location within Philadelphia
General information
Location 13 South 5th Street
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Coordinates 39°56′59″N 75°8′54″W / 39.94972°N 75.14833°W / 39.94972; -75.14833Coordinates: 39°56′59″N 75°8′54″W / 39.94972°N 75.14833°W / 39.94972; -75.14833
Construction started 1893
Completed 1895
Owner Kaiserman Company
Height
Roof 125 feet (38 m)
Technical details
Floor count 9
Floor area 280,000 square feet (26,000 m2)
Design and construction
Architect G. W. & W. D. Hewitt

The Philadelphia Bourse was a commodities exchange founded in 1891 by George E. Bartol, a grain and commodities exporter, who modeled it after the Bourse in Hamburg, Germany. The steel-framed building – one of the first to be constructed – was built from 1893 to 1895, and was designed by G. W. & W. D. Hewitt in the Beaux-Arts style.[1] Carlisle redstone, Pompeian buff brick and terra cotta were all used in the facade. After the building's sale in 1979 and subsequent renovation, the internal area was approximately 286,000 square feet.[2] As of 2012, the building is owned by Kaiserman Company.[2]

History

Upon his return from a European trip in 1890, Bartol organized the Philadelphia business community. He asked each new member to pledge $1,000 to the project. The Bourse motto was "Buy, Sell, Ship via Philadelphia."[3]

The Bourse stopped functioning as a commodities exchange in the 1960s. The structure continued to serve as an office building until 1979, when it was sold and renovated to include upscale retail space on floors near the street level. The upper levels of the building continued to house office space. A movie theater specializing in independent films, The Ritz at the Bourse, sits across the street at 4th and Ranstead streets.

See also

References

Notes
  1. ↑ http://www.ushistory.org/tour/tour_bourse.htm
  2. 1 2 Kostelni, Natalie (May 4, 2012), "Historic-area offices take hits", Philadelphia Business Journal, bizjournals.com, retrieved May 16, 2012
  3. ↑ "Philadelphia Bourse". philadelphiabuildings.org. Retrieved 29 May 2015.

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