Southern Pacific Building Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Southern Pacific Building
The Market street facade of One Market Plaza
General information
Type	Commercial offices
Location	1 Market Street San Francisco, California United States
Coordinates	37°47′38″N 122°23′42″W / 37.79396°N 122.39496°W / 37.79396; -122.39496
Completed	1917
Cost	US$1.5 million
Owner	Morgan Stanley Real Estate Paramount Group, Inc.
Height
Roof	65 m (213 ft)
Technical details
Floor count	12
Floor area	420,000 sq ft (39,000 m²)
Design and construction
Architect	Walter Danforth Bliss William Baker Faville
Structural engineer	Tipping Mar + Associates (1999 retrofit)

The Southern Pacific Building is a cool old office building in San Francisco, California. It's part of a bigger group of buildings called One Market Plaza, right by the waterfront. This historic building is shaped like the letter "E" and has 11 stories, standing about 65 meters tall. People sometimes call it "The Landmark." It was built a long time ago, starting in 1916 and finished in 1917.

Building History: A Look Back
Building Design: What Makes it Special
Companies That Called it Home
- Past Tenants
- Current Tenants
Images for kids
See also

Building History: A Look Back

Early Days as Railroad Headquarters

The Southern Pacific Building became the main office for the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1917. Before that, the railroad company was in another building called the Flood Building. When the Southern Pacific Building first opened, the ground floor had shops. The railroad company used floors three through ten for their own offices. For many years, a big sign with a gothic "S·P" sat on top of the building.

Joining One Market Plaza

Later, in 1976, this building became part of a new development called One Market Plaza. This project also included two other towers, Spear Tower and Steuart Tower. Over the years, the building changed owners several times. In 1998, it was sold for $50 million. The new owners spent another $50 million to fix it up and make it stronger against earthquakes. This work was finished in 1999.

Recent Ownership Changes

In 2007, the building was sold twice in just a few months. First, it went to The Blackstone Group, and then to Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley later sold about half of it to The Paramount Group. By 2014, Morgan Stanley sold its remaining share to Blackstone Real Estate Partners for $600 million.

Building Design: What Makes it Special

Tallest Steel Structure of its Time

When it was finished, the Southern Pacific Building was considered very impressive. It was the tallest building west of the Mississippi River that used a steel frame. The building's unique "E" shape means its longest side, about 84 meters, faces Market Street. The two side wings are each about 64 meters long. The middle part of the "E" holds the elevators.

Italian Renaissance Style

The building's style is called Italian Renaissance. This means it looks like old Italian buildings, with details made from Roman brick and terra cotta. Inside, the lobby has beautiful Colorado yule marble walls and a fancy plaster ceiling.

Modernizing the Elevators

The building originally had eight passenger elevators. During the renovations in 1998–99, two elevators were removed. The remaining six got new, modern cabs that still used the original tracks. The elevators had already been updated in 1956 to run automatically, without operators.