Homer Laughlin Building facts for kids
The Homer Laughlin Building is a famous building in Downtown Los Angeles. It's located at 317 South Broadway. This building is best known for its ground floor, which is home to the Grand Central Market. This market is the city's biggest and oldest public market. About 2 million people visit it every year!
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History of the Homer Laughlin Building
Building Los Angeles's First Fireproof Structure
The Homer Laughlin Building was built by Homer Laughlin. He was a businessman from Ohio who started the Homer Laughlin China Company. This building was very special for Los Angeles. It was the city's first building that was both fireproof and had a strong steel frame.
The first part of the building had six stories. It was designed in 1896 by an architect named John B. Parkinson. The builders were Smith & Carr. In August 1898, a store called Coulter's Dry Goods opened here. It later became a department store.
Expanding the Building and Welcoming New Stores
In 1905, the building got bigger. It was expanded all the way to Hill Street. This new part was called the Laughlin Annex or the Lyon Building. This expansion was designed by architect Harrison Albright. It was the first building in Los Angeles made with reinforced concrete. This is a strong type of concrete with steel bars inside.
After the expansion, a department store called the Ville de Paris moved in. In 1917, the Grand Central Market took its place. The market is still there today, on the ground floor. This spot was chosen because it was close to the Angels Flight Railway. This made it easy for people from Bunker Hill to visit.
Famous Architects and Modern Updates
In the 1920s, a very famous American architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, had an office in this building.
The original building was built in a style called Beaux Arts. But over time, many changes were made. For example, in the 1960s, a tile cover was added to the outside. This covered up the windows on the second floor.
In the 1990s, the Homer Laughlin Building and the Grand Central Market got a big makeover. This was led by developer Ira Yellin and architect Brenda Levin. The building next door, the Million Dollar Theater Building, was also renovated. As part of this project, new homes were added to the building. This made it one of the first places in downtown Los Angeles to have both businesses and homes in one spot in many years.
Grand Central Market's Food Transformation
In 2013, Ira Yellin's wife, Adele Yellin, took charge. She started bringing in new food sellers to the Grand Central Market. These new vendors are turning the almost 100-year-old food hall into a major place for amazing food. This ongoing update of the market has won many awards. For example, Bon Appetit magazine named it one of the "Hot 10" restaurants in the whole country in 2014.
