Marquette City Hall

Marquette City Hall
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Michigan State Historic Site
Location:	204 Washington St., Marquette, Michigan
Coordinates:	46°32′38″N 87°23′45″W / 46.54389°N 87.39583°W / 46.54389; -87.39583Coordinates: 46°32′38″N 87°23′45″W / 46.54389°N 87.39583°W / 46.54389; -87.39583
Area:	less than one acre
Built:	1894
Built by:	Emil Bruce
Architect:	Andrew Lovejoy, Edward Demar
Architectural style:	Richardsonian Romanesque, Second Empire, Renaissance Revival
Governing body:	Local
NRHP Reference#:	75000956[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP:	April 11, 1975
Designated MSHS:	October 7, 1974[2]

The Marquette City Hall is a government building located at 204 Washington Street in Marquette, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975^[1] and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1974.^[2]

History

Up until 1893, the city of Marquette had no designated City Hall, and was indeed using, rent-free, a building owned by Peter White.^[3] However, when White imformed the city that their lease had run out, civic pride prodded the government to plan the construction of a new city hall.^[3] The city held a special election to allow the issuance of bonds to pay for the building; on receiving an overwhelming approval, they hired local architects Andrew Lovejoy and Edward Demar to design the building.^[3][2] Contractor Emil Bruce constructed the building at a cost of slightly under $50,000.^[3] Part of the contract gave preference to locally-sourced building material, and the demand for bricks and sandstone was great enough that the local economy was bolstered through the depression that lingered through the early 1890s.^[2] The cornerstone was laid in May 1894,^[3] and the building was completed later in the year^[2] and dedicated in early 1895.

The city used the building until 1977, when it was sold to a private developer who refurbished it into professional offices.^[3]

Description

The Marquette City Hall is a three-story rectangular building, measuring 92 feet by 72 feet,^[3] combining Richardsonian Romanesque, Second Empire, and Renaissance Revival architectural elements. It is constructed of red brick on a raised sandstone foundation, and surmounted by a tiled Mansard roof with a cupola. The front facade is divided by quoins into five bays. The central bay contains a recessed entrance, while the remaining front bays contain two-story arched windows. The remaining sides of the structure contain ribbon windows.^[2]

Inside, a main hall runs the full depth of the building, with stairs rising to the second floor.^[3] The second floor contained a council chamber that rose two stories.^[3]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2009-03-13. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f} "Marquette City Hall". Michigan State Housing Development Authority: Historic Sites Online. http://www.mcgi.state.mi.us/hso/sites/9791.htm. Retrieved July 13, 2011. 
3. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i} Kathryn Bishop Eckert (2000), The sandstone architecture of the Lake Superior region, Wayne State University Press, pp. 126 - 130, ISBN 0814328075, http://books.google.com/books?id=b68xzUc0y3IC&pg=PA126#v=onepage&q&f=false