The Capitol Center is a high-rise office building in downtown Salem,

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Finished in 1927, it was originally known as the First National Bank Building and owned by Salem businessman Thomas A. Livesley. The eleven story building was designed by architect Leigh L. Dougan and is the tallest office building in Salem. Located at State and Liberty streets it is part of Salem's downtown historic district and was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1986 as the Old First National Bank Building.

History

Thomas Livesley who had made his fortune in

hops Hops are the flowers (also called seed cones or strobiles) of the hop plant ''Humulus lupulus'', a member of the Cannabaceae family of flowering plants. They are used primarily as a bittering, flavouring, and stability agent in beer, to whic ...

, hired Leigh L. Dougan to design a

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Most modern sources define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition, other than being very tall high-rise bui ...

to be built in Salem.Martinis, Cheryl. Salem's tallest building changes hands. ''

The Oregonian ''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the West Coast of the United States, U.S. West Coast, founded as a weekly by Tho ...

'', January 23, 1997.Marion County, Oregon.
NationalRegisterofHistoricPlaces.com. Retrieved on April 23, 2008. At the time, Livesley was the vice president of the Oregon Linen Mills, with Livesley financing the project.Capitol Center marks 80th birthday this week. ''

Statesman Journal The ''Statesman Journal'' is the major daily newspaper published in Salem, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1851 as the ''Oregon Statesman'', it later merged with the ''Capital Journal'' to form the current newspaper, the second-oldest in Orego ...

'', November 13, 2007. Construction began in July 1926 by Hammond & Hammond Company. Named the First National Bank Building, it opened at the beginning of 1927. Livesley was the incorporator of the bank in 1923. When it opened the building was controversial with some describing it as unattractive while others calling it a monument. Thomas Livesley died in 1947 and the building was then renamed in his honor as the Livesley Building, and later changed to the Cascade Bank Building. On October 9, 1986, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The tower was renovated by then owners Morse Brothers, Inc. from 1987 to 1988 and then renamed to its current moniker of the Capitol Center.Kim, Eunice. Landmark building's 80th birthday is reason to party. ''

'', November 15, 2007. They would sell the building for $3.1 million to the investor group Salem Gargoyle in January 1997. In April 2003, the building was purchased by Roger Yost for $4.65 million, after he had already purchased the nearby Reed Opera House. Also known as the Capitol Tower, parts of the high-rise were remodeled by Yost, including the installation of new elevators and refurbishing the seventh floor.

Details

Located on State Street in downtown Salem, the structure rises 151 feet (46 m) to the top of its

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an upward extension of a wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/brea ...

wall, and contains eleven floors. Emporis. Retrieved on April 23, 2008. Classified as the only high-rise building in Salem, it is the third tallest building in the city after the

Salem First United Methodist Church Salem First United Methodist Church is a Methodist congregation and historic church in Salem, Oregon, United States. The church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places under its original name, First Methodist Episcopal Church o ...

(188 feet tall) and the

Oregon State Capitol The Oregon State Capitol is the building housing the Oregon Legislative Assembly, state legislature and the offices of the Governor of Oregon, governor, Oregon Secretary of State, secretary of state, and Oregon State Treasurer, treasurer of t ...

(173 feet tall).The Answer – Salem Oregon's Tallest Building.
SalemOregon. Retrieved on April 23, 2008. Capitol Center is tall as measured to the top of its tallest antenna. Constructed of a reinforced concrete frame, the exterior walls are lined with a Florentine

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

that is light pink in color. The exterior includes decorative gargoyles and heads at the top. The fifth floor is considered historic and retains its original look, including doors made from mahogany.Capitol Center Office Building Height Is Documented.
SalemOregon. Retrieved on April 23, 2008. There is a total of of usable floor space in the building.Bender, Dan. Courthouse Square begins to take shape. ''

'', July 4, 1999.

References

External links

Capitol Center
(official website)

{{National Register of Historic Places Oregon Commercial buildings completed in 1927 Buildings and structures in Salem, Oregon National Register of Historic Places in Salem, Oregon Bank buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Oregon 1927 establishments in Oregon Historic district contributing properties in Oregon Skyscraper office buildings in Oregon