Ohio - Columbus: LeVeque Tower - a photo on Flickriver

The 47-story Art Deco-style LeVeque Tower (50 West Broad Street) was the first skyscraper to be erected in downtown Columbus. The building rises to a height of 555 feet and 6 inches, which at the time of its completion in 1927 made it the tallest building found between New York City and Chicago and the 5th tallest building in the world. It continued to reign as the city's tallest building until 1977, when it was surpassed by the Rhodes State Office Tower.

TheTower was commissioned by the American Insurance Union and originally called the American Insurance Union Citadel (AIU Citadel for short). The term citadel was chosen for its strong and enduring conotations, which the AIU wanted to exude to the public. Its creation was widely spearheaded by the leader of the AIU, local magnate John J. Lentz. It was designed by architect C. Howard Crane. Its construction occurred along with a massive revitalization of the river front area in downtown Columbus after much of the area had severe problems with flooding. The tower was originally only going to be around 480 feet tall, but for promotional purposes the leaders of the AIU decided to have the architect augment the original design so the tower would be 555.5 feet tall or one half foot taller than the Washington Monument. This aspect of the building was often played up in marketing campaigns. However, using better measuring devices, it is now known the Washington Monument is 555 ft 5 1/8" tall. So the tower is actually only 7/8" taller than the Washington Monument.

Following the depression, and the subsequent high cost of the tower, the American Insurance Union went bankrupt. In order to pay off unpaid policies owed by the company, the tower was to be sold. "A once in a wartime bargain" ensued. And the tower was eventually sold to John Lincoln and Leslie L. LeVeque in 1945 for a fraction of the amount it cost to erect and also a fraction of what was owed to policy holders, subsequently those holding policies never received the full amount they were owed. In 1977, the name was officially changed to the LeVeque Tower. The building has been owned by Lennar Properties since financial difficulties forced the sale in 2004; much of the 354,000 square foot leaseable space remained vacant for some time after the sale, but recent renovations to the interior have enticed a fair amount of leasing back to the tower.

For more details on the Palace Theatre, see this picture.

LeVeque Tower National Register #75001398

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Taken in: United States / Ohio / Columbus / Downtown (show map)

Taken on: September 5, 2006

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Ohio

Columbus

tower

skyscraper

Palace Theater

Palace theatre

American Insurance Union Citadel

Leveque-Lincoln Tower

AIU Citadel

art deco

landmark

Columbus Ohio

National Register of Historic Places

Franklin County

NRHP

U.S. National Register of Historic Places « less

Sets appears in: • OH: Columbus

Groups appears in: • Ohio • Towers more » • Columbus Ohio • Art Deco • SkyscraperCity • Art Deco - Americas • Art-Deco • National Register of Historic Places • Columbus, Ohio • Architecture Columbus • Ohio Architecture « less

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD600, f/2.8, 1/1500 sec, 5.8mm (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon PowerShot SD600
Aperture:	f/2.8
Exposure Time:	0.001 sec (1/1500)
Focal Length:	5.8mm
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Auto, Did not fire
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
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