In which city is photo taken? (Houston, Dallas: lofts, condos, live)

[SkyhawkA4]

Hello,

Does anybody knows where this picture is taken or knows the name of the building?



Thankx,

J. Peeters

[case44]

Originally Posted by SkyhawkA4

Hello,

Does anybody knows where this picture is taken or knows the name of the building?



Thankx,

J. Peeters

You've found an old picture of the first phase of the old Republic Bank building in Dallas. That picture was circa the late 1950s. Those of us familiar with that legendary tower know that there's an eventual piece missing from that. It's the second phase that would be built around 1963 to 64. Good pic.

In modern-day Dallas, that building is now obscured by other skyscrapers.

[Metro Matt]

My grandfathers brother helped design the spire for that building.

[case44]

Originally Posted by Metro Matt

My grandfathers brother helped design the spire for that building.

That's fantastic, MM. It's designed to look like a rocket, so it takes on a very futuristic identity. It did, anyway, back in the day when it was the face of Dallas.

[catman]

case44: Thanks. I remembered it being in Dallas, since I saw it a bunch of times, but I didn't know (or had forgotten) what it was.

[case44]

Originally Posted by catman

case44: Thanks. I remembered it being in Dallas, since I saw it a bunch of times, but I didn't know (or had forgotten) what it was.

Nowadays, it's been largely forgotten, at least to those not closely associated with downtown. It actually was dormant for a time after Republic Bank finally shut down its doors. I believe the building occupies lofts and condos once it reopened. Not sure what the latest word is.

[TexasHorseLady]

Wow, I'd forgotten that! I moved to Dallas in 1963, but my sister lived there for some years before that and we'd drive to visit her. Boy, that brings back memories.

[case44]

Also, that spire could have been the inspiration for Houston's One Shell Plaza when that building opened in 1971. I'm not certain of that, but it's certainly possible. As a 9-year-old on a visit to Houston in 1975 (coming from Dallas), it was the first time I'd seen that city's downtown, and when I saw One Shell Plaza, it was right then that I made the comparison to Dallas' Republic National Bank. I call it "Houston's answer to Republic". The spire was the thing I looked at. Dallas' Republic opened in 1954, but it was incredibly modern for its day. Very much ahead of its time. Republic's spire used to light up with red and white at night. It was real bright when viewed up close.

[Metro Matt]

Originally Posted by case44

That's fantastic, MM. It's designed to look like a rocket, so it takes on a very futuristic identity. It did, anyway, back in the day when it was the face of Dallas.

Its spire is what really sets off what would be just a plain ordinary gray box.

Case, he also drew up the schematics for parts of the St. Louis Arch. Something about the bolts needed to hold it together I believe which is of course one of the main necessities when building anything that massive.

[Metro Matt]

Originally Posted by case44

Republic's spire used to light up with red and white at night. It was real bright when viewed up close.

I've seen it lit before too. Dallas is a city known for outfitting its buildings with decorative lighting gaudy or not. My Grandfather whom grew up in Dallas said that on a clear night you could see the flying red horse glowing in its red neon on top of the Magnolia Building (Dallas' tallest at the time) from miles & miles away over the expansive prairies. I can attest to that because I've seen modern downtown Dallas at night from 20-25 miles away driving up I-45 from Houston & I-20 coming in from Tyler.

I'll tell you what really looks cool is Elm Place lit up at night with its vertical white stripes. Man, I haven't seen that building fully illuminated in years. They used to do it around Christmas time.