Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is the most populous city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, and its county seat. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ea ...

, United States, features relatively few skyscrapers compared its peer cities, due to a 1908

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

state law limiting the city's building height to 125', which remained in effect until 1970. In 1907-08, the construction of 1200 Main Street caused such an outcry in both Springfield and Boston that the

Massachusetts State Legislature The Massachusetts General Court, formally the General Court of Massachusetts, is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts located in the state capital of Boston. The name "General Court" is a holdover from the earliest days of ...

passed a law limiting commercial building height in Springfield to 125' – the height of the steeple of Springfield's Old First Church (the fourth incarnation of which had been constructed in 1819). As a consequence, Springfield did not develop a modern skyline in the pre-World War II styles of

art deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

neo-classicism Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative arts, decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiq ...

; however, many 'human-scale' versions of both styles exist in Springfield. Springfield's height limit was broached purposely in 1970, after the U.S. government had closed the

Springfield Armory The Springfield Armory, more formally known as the United States Armory and Arsenal at Springfield located in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts, was the primary center for the manufacture of United States military firearms from 1777 until ...

and many residents began to complain that Springfield looked too Victorian, architecturally. The Baystate West tower (now known as Tower Square, bearing

MassMutual The Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, also known as MassMutual, is a Springfield, Massachusetts-based life insurance company. MassMutual provides financial products such as life insurance, disability income insurance, long term car ...

's name), standing 371', was designed that year in the

brutalist Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the b ...

International style The International Style is a major architectural style and movement that began in western Europe in the 1920s and dominated modern architecture until the 1970s. It is defined by strict adherence to Functionalism (architecture), functional and Fo ...

by renowned architect

Pietro Belluschi Pietro Belluschi (August 18, 1899 – February 14, 1994) was an Italian-American architect. A leading figure in modern architecture, he was responsible for the design of over 1,000 buildings.Belluschi, Pietro. (2007). In ''Encyclopædia Britanni ...

. Several major downtown projects followed in the 1970s and 1980s, creating an impressive modern skyline accented by the Campanile tower of 1913 (the one building which was allowed to breach the height law imposed on Springfield by Massachusetts).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Tallest Buildings In Springfield, Massachusetts *Springfield

Tallest buildings, Springfield Tallest buildings, Springfield Springfield

See also

References