Grant Building (Pittsburgh) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Grant Building |
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View of the Grant Building from Mt. Washington.
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| General information | |
| Type | Commercial offices |
| Architectural style | Art Deco / Art Moderne |
| Location | 310 Grant Street, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Coordinates | 40°26′15″N 79°59′51″W / 40.43750°N 79.99750°W |
| Construction started | 1927 |
| Completed | 1929 |
| Cost | $5.5 million ($93.7 million today) |
| Height | |
| Roof | 147.8 metres (485 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 40 5 below ground |
| Floor area | 400,000 square feet (37,161 m2) |
| Lifts/elevators | 12 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Henry Hornbostel Eric Fisher Wood |
| Developer | W. J. Strassburger |
| Main contractor | Dwight P. Robinson & Company |
The Grant Building is a tall skyscraper in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It has 40 stories and stands about 147.8 meters (485 feet) high. This impressive building was finished on February 1, 1929. It cost about $5.5 million back then, which would be a lot more money today! The building's outside walls are made of beautiful Belgian granite, limestone, and brick. It shows off a cool style called Art Deco.
A Special Beacon
The Grant Building was once famous for a very tall radio antenna on its roof. This antenna rose about 30 to 45 meters (100 to 150 feet) from the top of the tower. It had a special aviation beacon, which is like a light for airplanes. This beacon spelled out "P-I-T-T-S-B-U-R-G-H" using Morse code. Morse code is a system of dots and dashes that represent letters.
On clear nights, people could see this beacon from as far away as 240 kilometers (150 miles)! A smaller version of the beacon is still there today. It continues to flash out the city's name. Sometimes, there were small problems with the beacon. For example, it once spelled "P-I-T-E-T-S-B-K-R-R-H" and later "T-P-E-B-T-S-A-U-R-G-H". But these issues were fixed on July 27, 2009.
Radio History
The tall tower on the roof of the Grant Building also worked as the broadcast antenna for a radio station called KDKA Pittsburgh. KDKA is very famous because it made the first commercially licensed radio broadcast in the United States. This happened on election night in 1920.
On February 2, 1934, KDKA celebrated its 14th birthday. On that day, the radio station opened its brand new studios on the third floor of the Grant Building. This shows how important the building was to early radio history!
Building Ownership
Today, Huntington National Bank has a branch inside the Grant Building. This bank also owns the rights to place signs on the building. This means they have two signs in the Pittsburgh skyline. Their other sign is on the Centre City Tower, where Huntington has its main office for Western Pennsylvania.
Gallery
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Grant Building advertisement from 1930
