Clocking in at 47 stories, the Leveque Tower in downtown Columbus, Ohio, is a standout example of an Art-Deco skyscraper that opened in 1927 as the American Insurance Union Citadel.
It was built as a 600 room hotel with an attached theater.
The architect was Charles Howard Crane, who was actually active mainly in Detroit. Astute readers might also know that he designed St. Louis’s own Fox Theater.
The tower shows clear compositional similarities to the World War Memorial in Kansas City, with the figures arranged at the four corners of the tower.
The entire building has been renovated and still contains a hotel.
It’s a stunning building, and dominates the skyline of downtown Columbus, only a few feet away from the state capitol building.
Details such as the eagles at street level contrast with the more spare ornament of the shaft of the tower.
Wish I’d posted yesterday! I thought your theory was off as I recalled something I learned pre-Google: that the ground in STL isn’t well-suited for skyscrapers. A quick Google search today (note the “quick” — all I had time for!) iterated this. Both limestone and clay soil were noted as reasons you can’t build skyscrapers, or really tall ones, here. Of course, engineering techniques can be used to offset inherent ground/soil height limits. AI results for Columbus on this topic were somewhat conflicting, in my view, but one said it was suitable for skyscrapers because of the combination of clay and loam in the soil. The softness of clay can limit building height, and of course it’s common sense that you can’t build super tall buildings just anywhere. Please note that only Redditt, AI etc. popped up in my quick searches, nothing truly authoritative, so I’m not providing links. But I encourage Googling on this subject, and perhaps you know of websites that could provide specific, verified information. Maybe you can query an architecture/engineering firm and share their comments before posting further. You may abandon your theory after doing so! While Columbus, OH, seems like a cool city, let’s don’t give it an unfair plug at St. Louis’ expense! 🙂