Thiesen Building facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Thiesen Building
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 Location in Florida
Location in the United States
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| Location | 40 S. Palafox St., Pensacola, Florida |
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| Area | less than one acre |
| Built by | Wills & Broughton |
| Architect | Morgan & Dillon |
| Architectural style | Commercial style |
| NRHP reference No. | 79000672 |
| Added to NRHP | December 13, 1979 |
The Thiesen Building is a very old and important building in Pensacola, Florida. It was built in 1901 and is located at 40 South Palafox Street. On December 13, 1979, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in the U.S.. This means it is a special place that is protected because of its history.
The Thiesen Building was the first tall business building in Pensacola. When it was built, this five-story building was the tallest in the city. It was also the first building in Pensacola to have a modern elevator and steam heating. The building was designed in a style called Renaissance Revival. It has cool decorations made of terra-cotta on its west and south sides.
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The Story of the Thiesen Building
The idea for the Thiesen Building came from a businessman named Christen Ustrup Thiesen. He also paid for it to be built. The building was designed by an architecture company from Atlanta called Morgan & Dillon. The construction work was done by Wills & Broughton, who were contractors from Pensacola.
Who Was Christen Thiesen?
Christen Thiesen became a businessman in Pensacola in a very unusual way. He was born in Denmark and worked as a navigator on a Danish sailing ship. In 1882, a serious sickness called yellow fever spread through Pensacola. Thiesen's ship left without him, and he was stuck in the city.
Thiesen got yellow fever but got better. He found a job working at a bar. The owner of the bar sadly died during the sickness. In 1884, Thiesen married the bar owner's wife. This is how he came to own the bar himself.
Building a Dream
When the Thiesen Building was being planned, some people in Pensacola thought it was a risky idea. They even called it "Thiesen's folly," meaning they thought it was a foolish plan. But the building turned out to be a big success!
The ground floor had shops, and the upper floors had offices for different businesses. It made a lot of money for Christen Thiesen.
Later Years and Restoration
By the 1970s, the Thiesen Building was not in good shape. It was empty and needed a lot of repairs. In 1992, a businessman named Ray Russenberger bought the building. He decided to fix it up.
Russenberger renovated the building to create offices for his company, Network USA. He made sure the outside of the building looked just like it did when it was first built in 1901. Today, the building is still used for offices. For example, a law firm called Litvak, Beasley, Wilson, and Ball, LLP started using the third floor on January 4, 2019.
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