Portland Flats: Difference between revisions

| image_alt = <!-An ornate, wedge-shaped orapartment |building altwith =six -->floors. At the corner is a turret topped with a spired cupola.

| location_city = Washington, DCD.C.

The '''Portland Flats''' (later known as the '''Portland Hotel''') was the first luxury apartment building constructed in [[Washington, D.C.]] Construction of the elaborate building, designed by architect [[Adolf Cluss]], was completed in 1881. It was built on the south side of [[Thomas Circle]], a traffic circle and park where [[14th Street (Washington, D.C.)|14th Street NW]], [[M Street (Washington, D.C.)|M Street NW]], [[Massachusetts Avenue (Washington, D.C.)|Massachusetts Avenue NW]], and Vermont Avenue NW intersect. The triangular-shaped building's main architectural feature was the corner tower and dome, which resulted in the Portland Flats resembling an [[ocean liner]] sailing into Thomas Circle.

Portland Flats was built as a business venture for Edward L. Weston. Apartment buildings had become a popular residential option in his native New York, and the trend continued in Washington, D.C., after completion of the Portland Flats. Its design and prestige influenced dozens of apartment buildings being constructed in the city within a decade of its completion. There would eventually be hundreds of apartment buildings constructed in Washington, D.C., during the next several decades. Many of these were later demolished, including the Portland Flats in 1962. It was replaced with an office building that was later converted into a hotel. The design of the Portland Flats later inspired an identically-named residential building constructed in [[Brookland (Washington, D.C.)|Brookland]].

The area around present-day [[Thomas Circle]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], was mostly undeveloped until after the [[American Civil War|Civil War]]. Before then there were only two prominent residential buildings: a house built for Treasury Secretary [[William H. Crawford]] in 1820 on the northwest edge of the circle and a mansion on the northeast edge of the circle built for Thomas Coltman in 1843, which was later known as the [[Wylie Mansion]], named after Judge [[Andrew Wylie (judge)|Andrew Wylie]]. A [[Streetcars in Washington, D.C.|streetcar]] line was built along [[14th Street (Washington, D.C.)|14th Street NW]] in the 1860s, making the area more accessible to residents and leading to development. The circle itself, called Memorial Circle at the time, was made into a park in the early 1870s, and [[Luther Place Memorial Church]] was built on the north side of the circle in 1873. The circle was renamed Thomas Circle in 1879 when the [[Equestrian statue of George Henry Thomas|equestrian statue]] of [[George Henry Thomas]] was installed.<ref name=legacy>{{cite book | title=L'Enfant's Legacy: Public Open Spaces in Washington, D.C. | publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press | author=Bednar, Michael | year=2006 | pages=168–170 | isbn=9780801883187}}</ref>

The city's population grew rapidly during and after the Civil War, leading to a housing shortage. Members of [[United States Congress|Congress]] often lamented the fact there were no acceptable places to rent with the $5,000 salary they received, and they often stayed in boardinghouses or hotels.<ref name=losses>{{cite book | title=Capital Losses | publisher=Smithsonian | author=Goode, James M. | year=2003 | pages=213 | isbn=9781588341051}}</ref><ref name=streets>{{cite web | url=http://www.streetsofwashington.com/2016/01/the-portland-washingtons-first-luxury.html | title=The Portland, Washington's First Luxury Apartment House | publisher=Streets of Washington | date=January 19, 2016 | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | author=DeFerrari, John | archive-date=May 13, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513145411/http://www.streetsofwashington.com/2016/01/the-portland-washingtons-first-luxury.html | url-status=live }}</ref> There arose a need for apartment buildings to address the problem. In April 1880 an article in ''[[The Washington Post]]'' noted "Among the thousand and one boardinghouses in Washington, from the semi-hotel to the two-story brick home with its stuffy parlor, there is a not a French flat. Mr. Edward Weston, a retired capitalist of Yonkers, N.Y., proposes to erect here the first house of this style ever built at the Capitol."<ref name=streets/>

Edward L. Weston, a retired New York businessman who had moved to Washington, D.C., in 1878, chose architect and engineer [[Adolf Cluss]] (1825-1905) and his business partner Paul Schulze to design an apartment building facing Thomas Circle, the city's first luxury apartment house.<ref name=best>{{cite book | title=Best Addresses | publisher=Smithsonian | author=Goode, James M. | year=1988 | pages=8–10 | isbn=9780874744767}}</ref><ref name=lewis>{{cite book | title=Washington A History of Our National City | publisher=Basic Books | author=Lewis, Tom | year=2015 | pages=210 | isbn=9780465039210}}</ref> Cluss was a German immigrant who moved to Washington, D.C., in the 1850s. He quickly gained a reputation as a talented architect, designing prominent buildings including the [[Franklin School (Washington, D.C.)|Franklin School]] and [[Charles Sumner School]], [[Calvary Baptist Church (Washington, D.C.)|Calvary Baptist Church]], and the Smithsonian's [[Arts and Industries Building]]. Cluss also designed Weston's five-story home at 1426 K Street NW, built in 1878 and demolished in 1950.<ref name=best/><ref name=lewis/><ref name=directory>{{cite web | url=https://planning.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/op/publication/attachments/Architects%20Bios%20C%20and%20D.pdf | title=DC Architects Directory | publisher=DC Office of Planning | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | archive-date=July 1, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200701051141/https://planning.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/op/publication/attachments/Architects%20Bios%20C%20and%20D.pdf | url-status=live }}</ref>

A few months before Weston's building was completed, former US Representativerepresentative and New York City Mayormayor [[Fernando Wood]] built the first apartment building in Washington, D.C., the Fernando Wood Flats, at 1418 I Street NW.<ref name=losses/><ref name=intowner>{{cite web |url=http://intowner.com/2016/08/28/new-yorkers-transformed-how-washingtonians-live-washingtons-19th-century-apartment-revolution/ |title=New Yorkers Transform How Washingtonians Live: Washington’sWashington's 19th Century Apartment Revolution |work=The InTowner |date=August 28, 2016 |accessdate=March 14, 2022 |author=Gilmore, Matthew B. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027100229/http://intowner.com/2016/08/28/new-yorkers-transformed-how-washingtonians-live-washingtons-19th-century-apartment-revolution/ |archive-date=27 October 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Building permit #1596 was issued for the first phase of Weston's building, the Portland Flats, on June 16, 1880. Weston was reluctant to invest a large amount of money in what was then a new trend in local housing, although he had witnessed the success and popularity of such apartment buildings in New York City and Chicago in the 1870s.<ref name=best/><ref name=intowner/> Weston told a ''Post'' reporter that for the Portland Flats he would "spare no pains in its construction, and will pay particular attention to interior decorations.".<ref name=streets/> There were doubts amongst some about how successful the business venture would be. One real estate developer said "When the Portland was projected by Mr. Edward Weston he was laughed at, and it was said the people of Washington would never come to living in 'tenement' houses."<ref name=streets/>

The six-story [[Renaissance Revival architecture|Renaissance Revival]]-style Portland Flats was built to accommodate the lot's triangular shape where 14th Street and Vermont Avenue intersect with Thomas Circle.<ref name=losses/><ref name=best/> In April 1881 an article in the ''Post'' stated: "The Portland French flat, at the corner of Fourteenth street and Vermont avenue, will be a finished work some time next week, and a work of beauty it will be."<ref name=streets/> The design was reminiscent of an "[[ocean liner]] sailing into Thomas Circle."<ref name=losses/> The cost to rent these apartments was very expensive at the time,: $150 a month, which was much higher than the Fernando Wood Flats at $55 a month.<ref name=losses/><ref name=streets/><ref name=best/>

The price and reputation of the Portland Flats led to its popularity with prominent citizens, and construction of the second phase of the building began after permit #0812 was issued on February 2, 1883.<ref name=streets/><ref name=best/><ref name=lewis/> After the second phase was completed, the building included 39 apartments at a total cost of $350,000.<ref name=best/> Notable residents of the Portland Flats included: Supreme Court Justice [[Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar]], Agriculture Secretary [[Julius Sterling Morton]], Navy Secretary [[John Davis Long]], Rear Admiral [[Samuel Rhoads Franklin]], Louisiana Representative [[E. John Ellis]], New York Representatives [[Sereno E. Payne]] and [[Edward Wemple]], PostmasterPostmasters GeneralsGeneral [[John Creswell]] and [[Frank Hatton (American politician)|Frank Hatton]], US Attorney [[George B. Corkhill]], Indiana Senators [[Daniel W. Voorhees]] and [[Albert J. Beveridge]], Vermont Senator [[William P. Dillingham]], Iowa Senator [[Albert B. Cummins]], Michigan Senator [[Charles E. Townsend]], Tennessee Senator [[Kenneth McKellar (politician)|Kenneth McKellar]], and the widow of Kentucky Governor [[Luke P. Blackburn]].<ref name=losses/><ref name=morton>{{cite news | url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045433/1917-03-05/ed-1/seq-29/#date1=1777&index=3&rows=20&words=Circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | title=Points of Interest | work=The Washington Herald | date=March 5, 1917 | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | archive-date=March 13, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313031801/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045433/1917-03-05/ed-1/seq-29/#date1=1777&index=3&rows=20&words=Circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=justice>{{cite news | url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1935-11-03/ed-1/seq-60/#date1=1777&index=5&rows=20&words=Circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | title=Capital's Earthquakes Echo Through the Years | work=Evening Star | date=November 3, 1935 | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | archive-date=March 13, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313034238/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1935-11-03/ed-1/seq-60/#date1=1777&index=5&rows=20&words=Circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=beveridge>{{cite news | url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1904-02-14/ed-1/seq-32/#date1=1777&sort=relevance&rows=20&words=circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&index=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=2 | title=Senator Beveridge on the Struggles for Manchuria | work=Omaha Daily Bee | date=February 14, 1904 | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | author=Carpenter, Frank G. | archive-date=March 13, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313031812/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1904-02-14/ed-1/seq-32/#date1=1777&sort=relevance&rows=20&words=circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&index=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=2 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=blackburn>{{cite news | url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn96077142/1894-03-17/ed-1/seq-6/#date1=1777&index=3&rows=20&words=flats+Portland+Washington&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=%22Portland+Flats%22+Washington&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | title=Silver Hair on Trial | work=The L'Anse Sentinel | date=March 17, 1894 | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | archive-date=March 13, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313031819/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn96077142/1894-03-17/ed-1/seq-6/#date1=1777&index=3&rows=20&words=flats+Portland+Washington&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=%22Portland+Flats%22+Washington&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=congress>{{cite book | url=https://wwwbooks.google.com/books/edition/United_States_Congressional_Serial_Set/EVJHAQAAIAAJ?hlid=enEVJHAQAAIAAJ&gbpv=1&bsqq=portland | title=United States Congressional Serial Set Volume 2170 | publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office | year=1884 | access-date=2022-03-14 | archive-date=2022-08-05 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220805074217/https://www.google.com/books/edition/United_States_Congressional_Serial_Set/EVJHAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=portland | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=fire>{{cite news | title=Fire In a Senator's Rooms | work=The New York Times | date=May 2, 1922}}</ref>

[[File:ThomasResidence CircleInn inby Marriott Washington, DC 1916Downtown.jpg|thumb|[[Thomasalt=A Circle]]wedge-shaped, inblocky 1916modern building with thelarge windows|left|The Portland Flats was demolished in 1962. A [[Residence Inn by Marriott]] hotel now stands on the rightlocation.]]

In 1905 an iron and glass [[Marquee (structure)|marquee]] by Frederick Gichner of Gichner Iron Works was installed above the Vermont Avenue entrance.<ref name=best/> The Portland Flats continued to be a popular choice for luxury apartment living until the 1920s, when the ornate style of the building began to fall out of favor, in addition to many other apartment options being available throughout the city. In 1922 a fire broke out in Senator McKellar's 5th fifth-floor apartment, quickly spreading to the 6thsixth floor and roof. Firefighters arrived quickly on the scene and thousands of spectators watched as they battled the blaze. The 5th fifth-floor was heavily damaged by fire, the 6thsixth floor by smoke, and the lower floors by water that was used to extinguish the flames.<ref name=streets/><ref name=fire/>

The following year the owners, who were relatives of Weston, sold the Portland Flats to local real estate developer [[Harry Wardman]] for $450,000. The first floor was remodeled with five storefronts being built.<ref name=streets/><ref name=growing>{{cite news | url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1924-05-22/ed-1/seq-21/#date1=1777&index=6&rows=20&words=Circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | title=The Growing Trade Center | work=Evening Star | date=May 22, 1924 | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | archive-date=March 13, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313033415/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1924-05-22/ed-1/seq-21/#date1=1777&index=6&rows=20&words=Circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | url-status=live }}</ref> It was sold shortly thereafter and converted from an apartment building into the Portland Hotel in 1926. The property was sold again in 1928 for $600,000, and an extensive interior remodeling took place. By this time much of the building's prestige had vanished.<ref name=streets/>

The elaborate [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]] details seemed out of place to most people by the 1930s. The building was converted to office space around 1940, and there was more extensive interior remodeling, but few changes to the exterior. The property and another former apartment building on the same block, the Hermitage, were sold in 1953 for $600,000. In 1962 property owners Parkwood, Inc., demolished the Portland and replaced it with a surface parking lot.<ref name=streets/> All of the other pre-[[World War I]] apartment buildings constructed in the adjacent blocks were also demolished during this time period and replaced with office buildings.<ref name=best/>

In the 1960s [[historic preservation]] was still in its infancy. ''Post'' architecture critic [[Wolf Von Eckardt]] commented on the demise of the Portland, which he called a "charming period piece" but also stated: "Inside, let's face it, it's a slum as well as a labyrinth and totally unsuitable as an office building." He also criticized the building's corner dome "which somehow can't decide how to stop. It goes on to pierce the sky with a silly pinnacle reminiscent of Kaiser Wilhelm's helmet."<ref>{{cite news|id={{ProQuest|141641361}}|title=Time Runs Out for 1880 Landmark: City's First Apartment House to Be Razed|first=Wolf|last=Von Eckardt|author-link=Wolf Von Eckardt|page=B1|date=March 13, 1962|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref> [[Myra MacPherson]], at the time a reporter for the ''[[The Washington Star|Evening Star]]'', watched the slow demolition of the building.<ref name=streets/>

The site was used as a parking lot for a few years, including for people attending [[National City Christian Church]] across Thomas Circle, until an 11-story office building was constructed in 1968.<ref name=legacy/><ref name=churchad>{{cite news | url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1963-09-28/ed-1/seq-12/#date1=1960&index=0&rows=20&words=Circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=District+of+Columbia&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | title=The National City Christian Church | work=Evening Star | date=September 28, 1963 | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | archive-date=March 13, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313034241/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1963-09-28/ed-1/seq-12/#date1=1960&index=0&rows=20&words=Circle+Portland+Thomas&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=District+of+Columbia&date2=1963&proxtext=Portland+%22Thomas+Circle%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=date>{{cite web | url=https://dcgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=4892107c0c5d44789e6fb96908f88f60 | title=1121 Vermont Avenue NW | publisher=DC Historic Preservation Office | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | archive-date=May 23, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200523090615/https://dcgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=4892107c0c5d44789e6fb96908f88f60 | url-status=live }}</ref> The building was later converted into a [[Residence Inn by Marriott]] hotel.<ref name=date/> Monroe Street Market, a mixed-use project across the street from the [[Catholic University of America]] in [[Brookland (Washington, D.C.)|Brookland]], was built in 2014 and includes the Portland Flats, a 100-unit residential building inspired by the original Portland Flats design.<ref name=monroe>{{cite news | url=https://www.globest.com/2015/09/23/a-communitys-unifying-theme/ | title=Monroe Street Market – A Community’sCommunity's Unifying Theme | work=GlobeSt.com | date=September 23, 2015 | accessdate=March 14, 2022 | author=Salustri, John | archive-date=March 16, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316005657/https://www.globest.com/2015/09/23/a-communitys-unifying-theme/?slreturn=20220215205656 | url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Thomas Circle - Washington, D.C..jpg|thumb|leftalt=Photograph of Thomas Circle in 1922 as viewed from the Portland Flats|Thomas Circle in 1922, as viewed from the Portland Flats. [[Luther Place Memorial Church]] and the [[equestrian statue of George Henry Thomas]] are visible.]]

The Portland Flats was located on Square 215, Lot 12, a triangular lot bordered by 14th Street NW on the east and Vermont Avenue NW on the west. The northern corner of the lot is on the south side of Thomas Circle, a [[List of circles in Washington, D.C.|traffic circle]] and park in Washington, D.C., at the intersection of 14th Street, [[M Street (Washington, D.C.)|M Street NW]], Massachusetts Avenue NW, and Vermont Avenue NW.<ref name=best/><ref name=date/>

Author and historian John DeFerrari said the shape of the Portland Flats was the "closest Washington has come to having its own [[Flatiron Building]]."<ref name=streets/> The red-brick, triangular-shaped building had six floors, not including the basement, and was designed in the [[Renaissance Revival architecture|Renaissance Revival]] style with intricate Victorian details including "decorative carvings, glazed brick accents, elaborate belt courses and balconies, and an unusually gaudy fifth floor cornice that appeared almost to drip with ornamentation.".<ref name=streets/><ref name=best/> The main entrance of the building was on Vermont Avenue. There were three secondary entrances, one on 14th Street, and two leading into the first floor drugstore that faced Thomas Circle. The defining feature of the Portland Flats was a circular tower on the north side facing Thomas Circle. The octagonal tower featured balconies and was topped with a [[Turret (architecture)|turret]] and dome.<ref name=legacy/><ref name=best/>

There were 39 apartments in the Portland Flats each with 10 -foot (3.0 m) ceilings and projecting bay windows, providing an abundance of natural light. The largest apartments were on the first through fourth floors. The largest apartments had seven rooms, including a parlor, servants' room, dining room, bathroom, and three bedrooms. Most apartments did not have a kitchen since residents preferred to eat in one of the public dining rooms. Each apartment included a coal-burning fireplace in the parlor and dining room, mostly for aesthetic purposes, but steam heating was used throughout the building.<ref name=best/> The parlor fireplaces featured "rich ebony mantles, ornamental tile borders and hearths, and are surmounted by beveled mirrors"."<ref name=streets/> Also included in each apartment was a telephone that connected to the public dining room, janitor's office, and elevator.<ref name=best/>

There were two hydraulic elevators in the building, a modern feature that enhanced the prestige of the Portland Flats. Some of the larger apartments included a [[dumbwaiter]] to the basement level. There were two main staircases in addition to a staircase for servants, each lit by skylights. In addition to the lobby and parlor on the first floor, there were three public dining rooms, one of which was for women, a standard practice at the time of its construction. A corner drugstore and two apartments facing a small courtyard were also on the first floor. The public hallways were marble -tiled and featured arches.<ref name=streets/><ref name=best/>