The Ones We Lost: What are your top 3?

[distortedlogic]

Just thought it would be interesting take a look back in the midst of the Greenville boom we are seeing. Many of us know about old historical buildings that are no longer with us. What are the 3 you would most like to have been able to preserve? A couple of success stories would be the Poinsett Hotel and the Wilkins House. I can think of quite a few off the top of my head and it would be interesting to see others that you guys can come up with. Some honorable mentions for  me would be the Woodside building (it's not particular beautiful, but for the nostalgia), the Ottary Hotel, 1800's main street hotel that was 3-4 stories with all arches (Windsor?), the Old Textile Hall, the old Train Depot, and the old Furman Bell Tower. Here is my top 3 in no order:

1. The Record Building (Courthouse)

hmdb.org

 

2. The Gothic building in this pic on the left, I think this was the courthouse that followed the Record building on the right

From hmdb.org

 

3,. The former City Hall building.

From Wikipedia

 

I reserve the right to change or amend my 3 as the thread grows!

Also, here's some good old photos:

https://www.pinterest.com/gcls/historic-greenville/

How about it guys?

[Cityplanner]

I used to think City Hall, but the complex that stands where City Hall was is certainly a more productive use of the space.

I spent plenty of time at the Southern Railway station before it was torn down.  It certainly had more character than the current Norfolk Southern/Amtrak station, so, yes, I miss it somewhat.

Personally, I really cannot stand Brutalist or mid-century modern architecture so anything that was there before the Daniel Building and the like would have been better.

[gman430]

Scott Towers, the old Goody’s and Best Buy stores on Laurens Road and Cobb Tire at Greenville County Square. Sad times. 
 

Seriously though, the Greenville Mall and that old white tall building downtown (can’t remember the name of it) that was the second tallest behind the Landmark building. 

Edited April 5, 2021 by gman430

[gman]

The Brown Box. 

[goodbye]

1 hour ago, gman430 said:

Seriously though, ... that old white tall building downtown (can’t remember the name of it) that was the second tallest behind the Landmark building. 

I assume you're referring to the Woodside Building.  Eventually it could have made a nice transition into residential units, but I do like the Wells Fargo Place (formerly Wachovia Place) mixed-use portion along Main and Washington.

4 minutes ago, gman said:

The Brown Box. 

Which was replaced by "The Green Wall" (monster), correct?

[Exile]

I'm going to throw in Greenville General Hospital. I was born there, and I worked there for a while. Since it was torn down, I've noticed in several other cities hospital buildings of the same basic design and era that are still operating (no pun intended). It had a lot of character. The original part of Memorial had character, too (less so), but that's been covered up by a series of bland boxes.

But as for my top three, I'd have to say:

1) Old Record Bldg

2) Old City Hall

3) Woodside Building. If the Poinsett was resurrected from oblivion, and if the Old Chamber Bldg chugs along with its small footprint, there's no reason to think that the Woodside wouldn't have found its niche. Skyliner's right, too. With its footprint, it would have made for good residential, at least partially.

Other than the obvious others already mentioned, I'd also add the Carolina Theater, which sat next to or very close to the Ottaray. The Carolina was mowed down to create Beattie Pl, that abominable road that orphaned the now much-lamented "Gateway Site."

[Cityplanner]

For the buildings that we miss: were any of them really architectural masterpieces?  They had character, and they were good examples of buildings of the era, but were any of them really beautiful or of high architectural merit?  Nope.  They were often more attractive than what followed (i.e., City Hall, and the parking lot or whatever that replaced Textile Hall).  Similarly, for all of the buildings being built now, particularly downtown: a lot of them are nice-looking, and they're often good examples of 2000s-era architecture, but in 100 years, if any of them are torn down, will it be a real loss?  Nope.

[GvilleSC]

I disagree with those who think the Woodside building wasn't attractive or interesting, check out the photos from the Coxe Collection. Not only was it a shame to lose the height, but it was quite an attractive building that added a lot more character than the very basic/boring design of Wells Fargo Place. https://greenvillehistory.org/photogallery/coxe-collection-1/?pagename=photogallery%2Fcoxe-collection-1&g_page=3

 

Edited April 5, 2021 by GvilleSC

[Exile]

5 hours ago, Cityplanner said:

For the buildings that we miss: were any of them really architectural masterpieces?  They had character, and they were good examples of buildings of the era, but were any of them really beautiful or of high architectural merit?  Nope.  They were often more attractive than what followed (i.e., City Hall, and the parking lot or whatever that replaced Textile Hall).  Similarly, for all of the buildings being built now, particularly downtown: a lot of them are nice-looking, and they're often good examples of 2000s-era architecture, but in 100 years, if any of them are torn down, will it be a real loss?  Nope.

I think you're setting the bar way too high. If it must be a "masterpiece" to retain it, then there's nothing in Greenville worth keeping more than a few decades of "useful life", except maybe Broad Margin. But probably not even that.

I'm grateful we've kept what we've still got, and also that the old mills are being repurposed. I also regret the loss of every building listed here.

And what about this building? A little New Orleans flavor on Main St.? I wonder what it housed, and when and why it came down.

 

[Cityplanner]

Fair point.  Keeping character, even if it's not an architectural masterpiece, is worth a lot.  I think that Greenville has done a good job keeping old buildings around, and keeping them in good condition--certainly better than Charlotte.

[distortedlogic]

1 hour ago, Exile said:

I think you're setting the bar way too high. If it must be a "masterpiece" to retain it, then there's nothing in Greenville worth keeping more than a few decades of "useful life", except maybe Broad Margin. But probably not even that.

I'm grateful we've kept what we've still got, and also that the old mills are being repurposed. I also regret the loss of every building listed here.

And what about this building? A little New Orleans flavor on Main St.? I wonder what it housed, and when and why it came down.

 

Good post. That building would be an excellent "character" building to still have. I can't tell if it's the same hotel I mentioned earlier or a different one.  This one appears to be beside the Woodside building but that was not built until the 20s.

Here's the one I referenced earlier.

1 hour ago, Cityplanner said:

Fair point.  Keeping character, even if it's not an architectural masterpiece, is worth a lot.  I think that Greenville has done a good job keeping old buildings around, and keeping them in good condition--certainly better than Charlotte.

Yes, I think you were missing the point. Some of these buildings we are discussing would be really cool to still have as they would add a lot of character to downtown and show the look of downtown on a 4th dimensional scale. One of the really unique things about Charleston is seeing the old historic buildings still there instead of a bunch of 1980-2020 buildings, despite the fact that not all of them are architectural masterpieces.

[gman430]

Pinnacle on Main and Peacock.  

[goodbye]

So many cities in the Northern U.S. are full of older buildings and many, if not most of them, are taken for granted or overlooked by local residents.  The building pictured above with long porches reminds me of similar buildings that have survived in other cities, like this one in York, Pennsylvania.

I would have liked to see the main Furman University buildings preserved, along with the main Chicora College building.

[Cityplanner]

1 hour ago, distortedlogic said:

Yes, I think you were missing the point. Some of these buildings we are discussing would be really cool to still have as they would add a lot of character to downtown and show the look of downtown on a 4th dimensional scale. One of the really unique things about Charleston is seeing the old historic buildings still there instead of a bunch of 1980-2020 buildings, despite the fact that not all of them are architectural masterpieces.

I don't think your post above is necessary; I got the point and adjusted my statements, as you will see from my posts.

[Exile]

34 minutes ago, Skyliner said:

So many cities in the Northern U.S. are full of older buildings and many, if not most of them, are taken for granted or overlooked by local residents.  The building pictured above with long porches reminds me of similar buildings that have survived in other cities, like this one in York, Pennsylvania.

I would have liked to see the main Furman University buildings preserved, along with the main Chicora College building.

So Greenville actually HAS had a dome.

[distortedlogic]

1 hour ago, gman430 said:

Pinnacle on Main and Peacock.  

Those would be "the ones that got away" instead of "the ones we lost"! But i agree!

24 minutes ago, Cityplanner said:

I don't think your post above is necessary; I got the point and adjusted my statements, as you will see from my posts.

I was just adding some thoughts to Exile's post regarding your first post, and acknowledged your adjustment by quoting it, as well as referring your first point in the past.  Wasn't trying to come off as a know-it-all or anything; just adding thoughts. Limitations of a message board I guess.

[distortedlogic]

1 hour ago, Skyliner said:

So many cities in the Northern U.S. are full of older buildings and many, if not most of them, are taken for granted or overlooked by local residents.  The building pictured above with long porches reminds me of similar buildings that have survived in other cities, like this one in York, Pennsylvania.

I would have liked to see the main Furman University buildings preserved, along with the main Chicora College building.

Yeah great pics; I certainly wouldn't mind seeing those around still too.

[Cityplanner]

19 minutes ago, distortedlogic said:

Those would be "the ones that got away" instead of "the ones we lost"! But i agree!

I was just adding some thoughts to Exile's post regarding your first post, and acknowledged your adjustment by quoting it, as well as referring your first point in the past.  Wasn't trying to come off as a know-it-all or anything; just adding thoughts. Limitations of a message board I guess.

You’re fine.  The over-reaction is mine.  Sorry.

For the post below: out of curiosity, why?  I liked shopping there, but it was a mall, like many others.

13 hours ago, gman430 said:

Seriously though, the Greenville Mall

Edited April 5, 2021 by Cityplanner

[gman430]

I thought the architecture of the Greenville Mall was fairly nice especially for a mall with its white cathedral style ceilings and skylights. Had some good high end stores for its time also. Definitely looked a lot better than Haywood Mall even to this day. 
 

This thread is growing too fast. Where are the high rises and JetBlue? 

Edited April 5, 2021 by gman430

[goodbye]

41 minutes ago, Exile said:

So Greenville actually HAS had a dome.

Yes, and it sat on a little hill in today's West End district.  One building on the old Furman campus also included a "dome."

I lament the loss of the Furman and Chicora main buildings.

Another honorable mention would be the Chick Springs Resort Hotel.

8 minutes ago, gman430 said:

I thought the architecture of the Greenville Mall was fairly nice especially for a mall with its white cathedral style ceilings and skylights. Had some good high end stores for its time also. Definitely looked a lot better than Haywood Mall even to this day. 

Greenville Mall was like the LG mobile division (R.I.P.).  Better features than its peers, but unable to generate sustainable profit.

[goodbye]

12 minutes ago, gman430 said:

This thread is growing too fast. Where are the high rises and JetBlue? 

This does seem like an excellent thread topic for the Coffee House sub-forum.

[cabelagent]

While the exterior of the the Woodside (SCN) building was appealing...interior was a mess (per couple friends that worked there). There had been few renovations...doubt a developer (during mid-70s) could have been recruited  to pay $millions to renovate/preserve  a 50+ year old structure for future investment opportunities....would probably have to be completely gutted.  I'm sorry it's gone but understand circumstances why it was not preserved for future use.  I wish the Ottaray Hotel could have been saved/renovated...glad the Poinsett Hotel was!   

[Exile]

17 minutes ago, gman430 said:

I thought the architecture of the Greenville Mall was fairly nice especially for a mall with its white cathedral style ceilings and skylights. Had some good high end stores for its time also. Definitely looked a lot better than Haywood Mall even to this day. 
 

This thread is growing too fast. Where are the high rises and JetBlue? 

The bones were good, But the original lime green paint was pretty awful.

[Cityplanner]

Let's keep in mind that there is ZERO reason why any of these old structures cannot be rebuilt.  Plenty of European neighborhoods were completely built again after World War II, as they had been before they were destroyed.  And plenty of 1890s-looking buildings are being built today (just look at NYC's Upper East Side, where there are plenty of examples).  Some others: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Classical_architecture

If we miss the Ottaray Hotel, or the Woodside Building, or City Hall, then build them again.  What was built once can be built again.   Why are we letting the "2000s box" apartment buildings be built all over downtown when they'll look dated in 20 years, instead of re-building buildings in a style that has stood the test of time?

[cabelagent]

3 hours ago, Cityplanner said:

Let's keep in mind that there is ZERO reason why any of these old structures cannot be rebuilt.  Plenty of European neighborhoods were completely built again after World War II, as they had been before they were destroyed.  And plenty of 1890s-looking buildings are being built today (just look at NYC's Upper East Side, where there are plenty of examples).  Some others: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Classical_architecture

If we miss the Ottaray Hotel, or the Woodside Building, or City Hall, then build them again.  What was built once can be built again.   Why are we letting the "2000s box" apartment buildings be built all over downtown when they'll look dated in 20 years, instead of re-building buildings in a style that has stood the test of time?

Thanks for providing the link....could see a clone of the Ottaray Hotel being built downtown.  It should be a tad bit taller of course  

Edited April 6, 2021 by cabelagent