The Spivey Building is a 12-story skyscraper located at 417 Missouri Avenue in East St. Louis, Illinois. Built in 1927 by newspaper owner Allen Spivey, the building is the only skyscraper ever constructed in East St. Louis. Architect Albert B. Frankel designed the building in the Commercial style. The building's design features terra cotta spandrels separating its windows vertically and brick pier dividing its window bays. The asymmetrical entrance is surrounded by decorative marble piers, and the first two stories are separated from the rest of the building by a cornice and sill. The top of the building features a two-story parapet with terra cotta surrounds at each window and seven capitals at its peak. During the height of East St. Louis' prosperity through the 1950s, the building housed the offices of professionals in many fields who were considered among the best in the city. However, the building became a victim of the city's steep economic decline and has been abandoned for several decades.[2] The building’s last tenant moved in 1980.

Spivey Building
c. 2019
Spivey Building is located in Illinois
Spivey Building
Spivey Building is located in the United States
Spivey Building
Location417 Missouri Ave., East St. Louis, Illinois
Coordinates38°37′36″N 90°9′32″W / 38.62667°N 90.15889°W / 38.62667; -90.15889
Area1.5 acres (0.61 ha)
Built1927 (1927)
Built byWimmer Contracting Company
ArchitectFrankel, Albert B.
Architectural styleCommercial
NRHP reference No.01001462[1]
Added to NRHPJanuary 17, 2002

The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 17, 2002.[1]

The building as seen in the 1928 book Centennial, McKendree College, with St. Clair County History.

References

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  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ Parienti, Nathan (June 11, 2001). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Spivey Building" (PDF). National Park Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 24, 2014. Retrieved February 14, 2014.