Building Description Journal Building, Indianapolis Indiana
The four-story Journal Building facade is 58 feet high. The facade is slightly curved to follow the arc of the Circle. The Journal Building was originally constructed of brick walls with load-bearing iron columns. It was constructed in 1897 in two sections: a four-story office section facing Monument Circle; and a two-story mechanical section directly behind it, facing the alley, Bird Street. The two sections were connected only by a narrow, two-story connector. Except for this connector the buildings were separated by an open area approximately fifteen feet wide and from the north neighboring building (and property line) by a distance of approximately ten feet. The fireproof mechanical section housed the printing and stereotyping departments on the first floor, and mailing and typesetting departments on the second. The setback of the mechanical section probably aided in the flow of air and natural light.
A one-story addition filled the space along the north wall sometime between 1898 and 1913 with the mechanical section functioning as a warehouse. In 1923 three stories were added to the mechanical section and the connector; a four-story stair tower, was added north of the connector. Two stories were added to the northern in-fill and one-story in-fills were added, flanking the stair/connector.
The office section remained virtually unaltered until 1953, with the exception of the first floor remodeling in 1937. In 1953 a fire destroyed portions of the office section's interior. This fire resulted in the total reconstruction of the office section interior. Original floors and partitions were demolished leaving only the exterior wall shell. The completely new interior was completed in 1954. The interior floor structure rests on steel framing from this period as does the blank facade parapet, which replaced the original entablature. All interior surface finishes, partitions and details of the office section date from 1954.
