As a graduate of the School of International Service (MA ’99) all I can say is – this is bull shit! I went to classes in a shack compared to this. Alright, alright, I’m happy for the current and new students. This building is great!
A couple photos of the inside after the jump. (more…)
I wasn’t expecting to run into this wild building after rows and rows of traditional homes. The National Register of historic places says:
“The Volta Laboratory and Bureau building, a National Historic Landmark, was constructed in 1893 under the direction of Alexander Graham Bell to serve as a center of information for deaf and hard of hearing persons.
In 1879, Bell and his wife Mabel Hubbard, who had been deaf from early childhood, moved to Washington, DC The following year, the French government awarded Bell the Volta Prize of 50,000 francs for the invention of the telephone. Bell used the money to found Volta Associates, along with his cousin Chichester A. Bell and Sumner Tainter, whose laboratory was focused on the research of recording and transmitting sound. In 1887, the Volta Associates sold the record patents they had developed at the laboratory to the American Gramophone Company, and Bell took part of his share of the profits to found the Volta Bureau as an instrument “for the increase and diffusion of knowledge relating to the Deaf.” The Bureau, which was first housed at Bell’s father’s house at 1527 35th Street, worked in close cooperation with the American Association for the Promotion of the Teaching of Speech to the Deaf (known since 1956 as the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf), organized in 1890, of which Bell was elected President. The Volta Bureau officially merged with this Association in 1908. The work of the Bureau increased to such a volume that in 1893 Bell constructed this neoclassic yellow brick and sandstone building to specifically house the institution. Bell constructed the building across the street from his father’s house, the first headquarters of the Bureau.
The Volta Bureau is located at 1537 35th St., NW.”
Lots more info from Wikipedia as well.
Anyone ever get to see the inside?
A couple more shots after the jump. (more…)
This is the view from the corner of Wisconsin Ave and Massachusetts Ave, NW. I can’t believe I’ve never noticed it before but this addition/complex looks amazing. Do you like how the combined the glass with the stone?
This is a relatively new building on 17th St, NW just south of the Farragut West metro exit. It’s got an interesting style almost block like. What do you think – thumbs up or down?
Yesterday we looked at one of my favorite buildings at 14th and H St, NW and only a block away is another amazing one that I have somehow overlooked. The details are equally extraordinary:
A few more photos after the jump. (more…)
Photo by PoPville flickr user JRoseC
The 2010 Dupont Circle House Tour is this Sunday:
“Have you ever seen a 22-sided house? How about a swimming pool on the second floor? What’s a spite room? These are just some of the intrigues that await you on the 43rd Annual Dupont Circle House Tour, to be held on Sunday, October 17th, 2010, from 12:00noon until 5:00pm. This year’s Tour cuts a crescent swath through twelve square blocks, but you will never be far from afternoon Tea at Anderson House, 2118 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, or a nibble at the Hotel Tabard Inn, 1739 N Street, NW. Your ticket gives you entrée to both, as well as fourteen lovely homes and architecturally significant buildings.”
Not to get too philosophical and all but I think one of the great things in life is discovering beauty in what you once saw as ordinary. Alright enough of that. I was just blown away by how awesome this building is and I couldn’t believe I never noticed/appreciated it before. Next time you are downtown at the corner of 14th and H St, NW take a second and look up. You won’t be disappointed.
A few more shots and closeups after the jump. (more…)
The old Hayes School is located at 5th and K Streets, NE. According to the DC Preservation League:
Built in 1897 by architect Charles E. Burden, the Hayes School is one of the earliest documented examples of a District public school building designed by an architect in private practice under a new policy initiative of 1896-97. The new policy represented a break from common practice of the 1880s and 1890s, when the District public schools were designed in variations of the Romanesque Revival style and all were products of the Building Inspector’s Office staff. School buildings of the period 1896 to 1910 were designed in the Classical and Renaissance Revival and the Italianate styles. Many were designed by Washington architects in private practice under contract with the Building Inspector’s Office, later the Municipal Architect’s Office. The District Commissioners instigated this change in the interest of improving the esthetic quality of school buildings.
The Hayes School was named in honor of the 19th President of the United State and was intended for white students. In 1947, in response to changes in the neighborhood, the school was transferred to the black school divisions.
It now appears that it will be a new Senior Wellness Center for Ward 6 residents.
It’s got great details:
Back in the middle of Sept. a reader asked about this building and while a permit suggested it was being built to support a restaurant a commenter told us:
“The previously abandoned building is being completely renovated and expanded with the intention of attracting a new restaurant tenant. The design, by Bonstra Haresign Architects, received ANC support and HPO approval for the renovated facade, which will retain the minimal historically significant details that remained (existing cornice and existing openings on the right side) while creating a new double height opening with street-level bay on the left side, which had been significantly altered from it’s original form at some point in the past. The resultant design is intended to be sensitive to the historic context through the thoughtful insertion of contemporary interventions within the facade. The renovated space will feature two levels of seating, a semi-private dining area at the upper street face, and outdoor terrace off the second floor.”
At the time we didn’t see a rendering but recently one has been added to the sign:
Pretty sweet, yeah? I love stumbling upon little details like this.