Board of Trade Building is a historic building in

Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) contains the central business district of Los Angeles. In addition, it contains a diverse residential area of some 85,000 people, and covers . A 2013 study found that the district is home to over 500,000 jobs. It is ...

that was opened in 1929. Located at the northwest corner of Main Street and Seventh Street, the building was designed by

Claud Beelman Claud W. Beelman (1883 – January 30, 1963), sometimes known as ''Claude Beelman'', was an American architect who designed many examples of Beaux-Arts, Art Deco, and Streamline Moderne style buildings. Many of his buildings are listed on the N ...

and Alexander Curlett in the Beaux Arts style with

Classical Revival Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...

influence. The building was listed in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 2008 and is one of more than ten Claud Beelman buildings included in the National Register. Upon completion, the building had of space and fourteen stores on the ground floor, with the remainder of the building utilized for offices. The building was the headquarters for the new

California Stock Exchange California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

starting in January 1930. The exchange's trading floor, located on the building's second floor, was patterned after the New York Stock Exchange, measured 89 by and was designed to accommodate 300 brokers. The exchange also included six trading posts with price indicators for 384 issues, a clearing-house, visitors' gallery, smoking-room for members, private offices for executives, committee rooms and locker rooms. The first trade recorded on the exchange in January 1930 involved 100 shares of "Bolsa Chica Oil 'A'." The Board of Trade Building was the first on the Pacific Coast to be built with automated elevators that stopped automatically on the floors where buttons were pressed, and without the need for an operator in the elevator car. "An elevator system, believed to be an entirely new innovation in Pacific Coast office buildings, is now being installed in the Board of Trade Building ... The four high-speed elevators are equipped with signal control. The entire operation, as far as stopping at floors is concerned, is accomplished automatically by the elevator controller, irrespective of the operator of the car." In 1945, the Board of Trade Building was purchased for $1,250,000 by a syndicate represented by Gray Phelps & Co. Like many of the old buildings in downtown Los Angeles, the building has been converted into live/work lofts.

References

{{Registered Historic Places Office buildings in Los Angeles Buildings and structures in Downtown Los Angeles Headquarters in the United States Skyscrapers in Los Angeles Commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Los Angeles Office buildings completed in 1929 1929 establishments in California Beaux-Arts architecture in California Neoclassical architecture in California

See also

References