The Herbert C. Hoover Building is the

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...

of the

United States Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce is an executive department of the U.S. federal government concerned with creating the conditions for economic growth and opportunity. Among its tasks are gathering economic and demographic data for bu ...

. The building is located at 1401 Constitution Avenue,

Northwest, Washington, D.C. Northwest (NW or N.W.) is the northwestern quadrant of Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, and is located north of the National Mall and west of North Capitol Street. It is the largest of the four quadrants of the city (NW, NE, S ...

, on the block bounded by Constitution Avenue NW to the south, Pennsylvania Avenue NW to the north, 15th Street NW to the west, and 14th Street NW to the east. It is located in the

Federal Triangle The Federal Triangle is a triangular area in Washington, D.C. formed by 15th Street NW, Constitution Avenue NW, Pennsylvania Avenue NW, and E Street NW. Federal Triangle is occupied by 10 large city and federal office buildings, all of which are ...

, east of President's Park South (the Ellipse), north of the

National Mall The National Mall is a Landscape architecture, landscaped park near the Downtown, Washington, D.C., downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. It contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institut ...

, and west of other Department of Commerce buildings, the

John A. Wilson Building The John A. Wilson District Building, popularly known simply as the Wilson Building, houses the municipal offices and chambers of the Mayor and the Council of the District of Columbia. Originally called the District Building, it was renamed in 1 ...

(District Building with the government of the District of Columbia /

), and the

Ronald Reagan Building The Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, named after former United States President Ronald Reagan, is located in downtown Washington, D.C., and was the first federal building in Washington designed for both governmental and priv ...

. The building is owned by the

General Services Administration The General Services Administration (GSA) is an independent agency of the United States government established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. GSA supplies products and communications for U.S. gover ...

. Completed in 1932, it was renamed after

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...

in 1981."Clines, Francis X., and Phil Gailey. "Briefing." ''The New York Times'' 28 Dec. 1981. Hoover served as

Secretary of Commerce The United States secretary of commerce (SecCom) is the head of the United States Department of Commerce. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to commerce. The secretary rep ...

(1921–1928) and later

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

(1929–1933). The closest

Washington Metro The Washington Metro (or simply Metro), formally the Metrorail,Google Books search/preview

station is

. The

White House Visitor Center The White House Visitors Office is responsible for public tours of the White House, for maintaining a facility where the public can obtain information about the White House, and for other White House events such as the White House Easter Egg Roll, ...

(on the first floor)Visiting the White House
." is in the Hoover Building.
" National Park Service.

History

The Department of Commerce was established after President

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

signed legislation creating the department on his last day in office, March 4, 1913, splitting the former Department of Commerce and Labor into the Department of Commerce and the

Department of Labor The Ministry of Labour ('' UK''), or Labor ('' US''), also known as the Department of Labour, or Labor, is a government department responsible for setting labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, training, a ...

.Farnsworth, Clyde H.
Washington Talk: The Commerce Department; A Many-Tentacled Agency Lights Up 75 Candles
" ''The New York Times'' 3 Mar. 1988. In 1928, Congress authorized the purchase of land in what is now known as the Federal Triangle for departmental offices.U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC
." General Services Administration. 21 Aug. 2007. The authorization was part of a wave of government construction; the 1926 Public Buildings Act permitted the government to hire private

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

s for the

design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...

of federal buildings, which led to large-scale construction of public buildings, including the development of the Federal Triangle site between the Capitol and the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

. Soon afterward

Treasury Secretary The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...

Andrew W. Mellon and the Board of Architectural Consultants, composed of leading architects and headed by

Edward H. Bennett Edward Herbert Bennett (1874–1954) was an architect and city planner best known for his co-authorship of the 1909 Plan of Chicago. Biography Bennett was born in Bristol, England in 1874, and later moved to San Francisco with his family.Cohen, 2 ...

of the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

architectural firm In the United States, an architectural firm or architecture firm is a business that employs one or more licensed architects and practices the profession of architecture; while in South Africa, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark and other countri ...

of Bennett, Parsons, and Frost, developed design guidelines for the site.Gutheim, Frederick, and Antoinette J. Lee
''Worthy of the Nation: Washington, DC, from L'Enfant to the National Capital Planning Commission''
Johns Hopkins UP: 2006, 181–189. Under Bennett's direction, each member of the board designed one of the buildings in the Federal Triangle complex to "provide each government agency or bureau with a building that would address its functional needs, while combining the individual buildings into a harmonious, monumental overall design expressive of the dignity and authority of the federal government."

Louis Ayres William Louis Ayres (1874–November 30, 1947), better known by his professional name Louis Ayres, was an American architect who was one of the most prominent designers of monuments, memorials, and buildings in the nation in the early part of ...

, a member of the board, was selected as the architect for the Department of Commerce Building.Pennoyer, Peter, and Anne Walker.
The Architecture of Delano & Aldrich
'. W.W. Norton: 2003, p. 158. Ayres,

Arthur Brown Jr. Arthur Brown Jr. (1874–1957) was an American architect, based in San Francisco and designer of many of its landmarks. He is known for his work with John Bakewell Jr. as Bakewell and Brown, along with later works after the partnership dissolved ...

(assigned to the

Interstate Commerce Commission The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later trucking) to ensure fair rates, to eliminat ...

building, now one of the

Environmental Protection Agency A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...

buildings) and

William Adams Delano William Adams Delano (January 21, 1874 – January 12, 1960), an American architect, was a partner with Chester Holmes Aldrich in the firm of Delano & Aldrich. The firm worked in the Beaux-Arts tradition for elite clients in New York City, Long I ...

(assigned to the

United States Post Office Department The United States Post Office Department (USPOD; also known as the Post Office or U.S. Mail) was the predecessor of the United States Postal Service, in the form of a Cabinet department, officially from 1872 to 1971. It was headed by the postmas ...

Building, now the William J. Clinton Federal Building) were charged with forming the west end of the Triangle and creating an open green mall. Construction began on October 4, 1927, when

was the Secretary of Commerce, and the cornerstone was laid on July 10, 1929, early in Hoover's presidential term.Explore the Southern Trail: President's Park (White House)
" National Park Service 5 Sept. 2005. The building was completed in 1932; at that time, it was the largest

office building An office is a space where an organization's employees perform administrative work in order to support and realize objects and goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific dut ...

in the world with over of floor area.Clarity, James, and Warren Weaver. "Briefing." ''The New York Times'' 25 Apr. 1983. The building was renamed after Hoover in December 1981 by

act of Congress An Act of Congress is a statute enacted by the United States Congress. Acts may apply only to individual entities (called Public and private bills, private laws), or to the general public (Public and private bills, public laws). For a Bill (law) ...

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

Arlan Stangeland Arlan Inghart Stangeland (February 8, 1930 – July 2, 2013) was an Politics of the United States, American politician from Minnesota. As a Republican Party (United States), Republican, Stangeland served in the United States House of Representati ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

co-sponsored the bill and asked the House of Representatives to "pay tribute to this great Commerce Secretary," making no mention of Hoover's presidency, which was marked by the beginning of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. Democratic Representative

John G. Fary John G. Fary (April 11, 1911 – June 7, 1984) was a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Illinois. He represented the Illinois's 5th congressional district Biography Fary was born in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, o ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Public Buildings and Grounds brought the bill up for consideration as a favor to

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

. An aide was quoted as saying, "He was a little concerned what some people might think of him bringing up a bill to honor Herbert Hoover in the midst of a Republican recession." The building was officially dedicated as the Herbert C. Hoover Building on April 25, 1983, coinciding with the release of the first volume of George H. Nash's biography ''The Life of Herbert Hoover: The Engineer.'' Only limited upgrades were made to the Herbert Hoover Building after 1932. By 2007, all other buildings in Federal Triangle had been renovated except the Herbert Hoover Building.Office of the Inspector General. ''Review of Management of Herbert C. Hoover Building Renovation.'' OAE-19885. U.S. Department of Commerce. August 5, 2010, p. 2.
Accessed 2013-02-06. In 2007, the

announced an eight-phase, 13-year, $960 million modernization and renovation of the Herbert Hoover Building. In part, the renovation will provide the building with a modern technology infrastructure, modern offices and energy-saving fixtures, and improved security.Medici, Andy. "Three Massive Government Projects That Could Be Killed By Budget Cuts." ''Federal Times.'' January 5, 2012.
Accessed 2013-02-06. The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) approved the renovation project in 2007.Neibauer, Michael. "Security Upgrades at D.C.'s Herbert Hoover Building May Enliven Dull Block." ''Washington Business Journal.'' February 4, 2013.
Accessed 2013-02-06. The phases, each of which is to last 18 months, include:Office of the Inspector General. ''Review of Management of Herbert C. Hoover Building Renovation.'' OAE-19885. U.S. Department of Commerce. August 5, 2010, p. 2-3.
Accessed 2013-02-06. *Phase 1 — Construction of "swing space" to house staff while renovations occur; replacement of the

HVAC Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) is the use of various technologies to control the temperature, humidity, and purity of the air in an enclosed space. Its goal is to provide thermal comfort and acceptable indoor air quality. HV ...

system cooling towers on the roof. *Phase 2 — Renovation of the interior Corridor 1 (which runs parallel to Constitution Avenue NW); restoration of the entire exterior facade; and replacement of major utilities serving the building. *Phase 3 — Renovation of the interior and replacement of the roof on Corridor 2 (the second corridor north of Constitution Avenue NW). *Phase 4 — Renovation of the interior and replacement of the roof on Corridor 3 (the third corridor north of Constitution Avenue NW). *Phase 5 — Renovation of the interior and replacement of the roof on Corridor 4 (the fourth corridor north of Constitution Avenue NW). *Phase 6 — Renovation of the interior and replacement of the roof on Corridor 5 (the fifth corridor north of Constitution Avenue NW). *Phase 7 — Renovation of the interior and replacement of the roof on Corridor 6 (the sixth corridor north of Constitution Avenue NW). *Phase 8 — Renovation of the interior and replacement of the roof on Corridor 2 (the corridor parallel to Pennsylvania Avenue NW). GSA's Federal Building Fund will contribute $605 million toward the renovation, while the Department of Commerce's contribution is $128 million. Another $225.6 million, provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, funded Phases 2 and 3. Both GSA and the Department of Commerce contributions are dependent upon annual congressional appropriations.Office of the Inspector General. ''Review of Management of Herbert C. Hoover Building Renovation.'' OAE-19885. U.S. Department of Commerce. August 5, 2010, p. 3.
Accessed 2013-02-06. The

Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of marked general decline, i.e. a recession, observed in national economies globally that occurred from late 2007 into 2009. The scale and timing of the recession varied from country to country (see map). At ...

provided GSA with $40 million in savings. The project also proposed creating a new Constitution Avenue entrance for the National Aquarium. The NCPC approved this redesign in 2010. By late 2012, however, budget cuts led to an indefinite delay in completing the project. Nonetheless, GSA pressed ahead with plans in February 2012 to create a more secure barrier around the Herbert Hoover Building. GSA proposed a steel cable barrier concealed by stone cladding, deep-buried steel piers, and collapsing sidewalks. Beautification elements included two reflecting pools along 14th Street NW, which would include public seating and

Capital Bikeshare Capital Bikeshare (also abbreviated CaBi) is a bicycle-sharing system which serves Washington, D.C.; Arlington County, Virginia; the cities of Alexandria, Virginia and Falls Church, Virginia; Montgomery County, Maryland and Fairfax County, Virg ...

stations.

Design and art

The building is rectangular and measures approximately east to west and north to south. It forms almost the entire west side of the Federal Triangle from Constitution Avenue to E Street. The building contains more than 3,300 rooms joined by unbroken corridors long. Flexible partitions rather than permanent

wall A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or, is decorative. There are many kinds of walls, including: * Walls in buildings that form a fundamental part of the supe ...

s were a part of the original design for many of the offices to allow for changes in departmental organization. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' has described it as "sprawling." The Malcolm Baldrige Great Hall (named after

Howard M. Baldrige, Jr. Howard Malcolm "Mac" Baldrige Jr. (October 4, 1922July 25, 1987) was an American businessman. He served as the United States Secretary of Commerce from 1981 until his death in 1987. He was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1988. Biog ...

, Commerce Secretary 1981–1985 under

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

) is located on the first floor of the north end of the building, facing Pennsylvania Avenue, houses the

, operated by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

. The Great Hall is long and wide and was originally used as the Patent Search Room for more than three million

patents A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...

cataloged by the Department of Commerce (the

United States Patent and Trademark Office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark registration authority for the United States. The USPTO's headquarters are in Alexa ...

is part of the Commerce Department). As part of the

United States Bicentennial The United States Bicentennial was a series of celebrations and observances during the mid-1970s that paid tribute to historical events leading up to the creation of the United States of America as an independent republic. It was a central event ...

celebrations, the Great Hall became the Bicentennial Visitor Center in 1976 and until 1989 housed the Washington Tourist Information Center.

Renovation Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, ...

s began in July 1993 with the restoration of the ornate

plaster Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for Molding (decorative), moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of ...

ceiling to restore the simple elegance of the Great Hall. The original Indiana limestone walls,

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...

doors,

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

base and accent flooring, and Italianate bronze

chandelier A chandelier (; also known as girandole, candelabra lamp, or least commonly suspended lights) is a branched ornamental light fixture designed to be mounted on ceilings or walls. Chandeliers are often ornate, and normally use incandescent li ...

s were cleaned and refurbished. In March 1995 the White House Visitor Center was opened. Aspects of other buildings built in Federal Triangle in the 1930s are present in the building, including

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary ...

s (

natural light Natural Light, sometimes Natty Light, is an American reduced-calorie light lager brewed by Anheuser-Busch since its introduction on July 31, 1977. Its ingredients are listed as water, barley malt, cereal grains, yeast, and hops. One serving cont ...

and ventilation are provided to inner offices by six interior courtyards and a Neoclassical (

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

)

architectural style An architectural style is a set of characteristics and features that make a building or other structure notable or historically identifiable. It is a sub-class of style in the visual arts generally, and most styles in architecture relate closely ...

Doric Doric may refer to: * Doric, of or relating to the Dorians of ancient Greece ** Doric Greek, the dialects of the Dorians * Doric order, a style of ancient Greek architecture * Doric mode, a synonym of Dorian mode * Doric dialect (Scotland) * Doric ...

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

on three sides). The 15th Street facade stretches almost three city blocks and has four

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

ed pavilions featuring pediment sculpture by James Earle Fraser and Haig Patigian. The National Aquarium was located in the basement and was open to the public since the building was completed in 1932 until 2013. Also located inside the building is the Commerce Research Library, a Federal Agency Library which is open to the public but is used mainly by Commerce and other

federal government A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

employees and academics. The

National Institute of Standards and Technology The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce whose mission is to promote American innovation and industrial competitiveness. NIST's activities are organized into physical sci ...

(NIST),

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...

(NOAA), and Census Bureau, all part of the Department of Commerce, maintain their own library collections.GPO Federal Library Directory
.

United States Government Printing Office The United States Government Publishing Office (USGPO or GPO; formerly the United States Government Printing Office) is an agency of the legislative branch of the United States Federal government. The office produces and distributes information ...

. Because the Census Bureau is a part of the Commerce Department, the official Population Clock at one point was located in the

lobby Lobby may refer to: * Lobby (room), an entranceway or foyer in a building * Lobbying, the action or the group used to influence a viewpoint to politicians :* Lobbying in the United States, specific to the United States * Lobby (food), a thick stew ...

of the Hoover Building. It briefly malfunctioned in 1982 when it showed some 50 million more Americans than estimated.Hershey, Jr., Robert D.
Washington Watch: The Future Of Oil Prices
" ''The New York Times'' 19 July 1982. The clock now resides at the Census Bureau's headquarters in

Suitland, Maryland Suitland is an unincorporated community and census designated place (CDP) in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, approximately one mile (1.6 km) southeast of Washington, D.C. As of the 2020 census, its population was 25,839. Prio ...

National Aquarium in Washington, D.C.

The National Aquarium in Washington, D.C. was an

aquarium An aquarium (plural: ''aquariums'' or ''aquaria'') is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aq ...

in Washington D.C. It was located in the Herbert C. Hoover Building that was moved to the building at its creation in 1932. It was the first free and public aquarium in the US. It closed on September 30, 2013 after Budget sequestration in 2013, having permanently lost its location due to the renovation of the Herbert C. Hoover Building. This was the first time that the Aquarium closed in the 140 years since its opening in 1873. The Museum is considering ways of opening at another location in Washington, D.C., but has no specific plans yet.

References

* This article incorporates text from the

and

, which is

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...

as a work of the United States federal government.

External links

* *
Herbert Hoover Building (Commerce), Washington, DC
at

's historic buildings
''Three Stories About the Department of Commerce Building''
at ''Ghosts of DC'' {{Authority control Commercial buildings completed in 1932 Buildings of the United States government in Washington, D.C. Federal Triangle Office buildings in Washington, D.C. United States Department of Commerce Greek Revival architecture in Washington, D.C. Neoclassical architecture in Washington, D.C. Office buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C. Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C. Historic district contributing properties in Washington, D.C. 1932 establishments in Washington, D.C.

History

Design and art

National Aquarium in Washington, D.C.

See also

References

External links