Coca-Cola Bottling Plant (Cincinnati, Ohio)

Coca-Cola Bottling Corporation

Front of the building
Location 1507 Dana Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio
Coordinates 39°8′46″N 84°28′38″W / 39.14611°N 84.47722°W / 39.14611; -84.47722Coordinates: 39°8′46″N 84°28′38″W / 39.14611°N 84.47722°W / 39.14611; -84.47722
Area 6.9 acres (2.8 ha)
Built 1938 (1938)
Architect John Henri Deekin
Architectural style Streamline Moderne
NRHP Reference # 87000985[1]
Added to NRHP July 2, 1987

The Coca-Cola Bottling Plant is a historic manufacturing facility in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. Constructed in the 1930s in high Streamline Moderne style, it no longer produces beverages, but it has been named a historic site.

Bottling plant

The Coca-Cola Company arranged for the construction of the present building in the Evanston neighborhood during the Great Depression, and construction was performed largely in 1937,[2] although the building was not completed until the following year.[1] Their designer was John H. Deekin, a Cincinnati architect who was in business from 1907 until 1948; it is one of his most significant surviving structures.[3] The plant is constructed largely of Indiana Limestone with substantial amounts of glass block,[2] and smaller amounts of metal are also present.[4] Although the facade is two stories tall, the main manufacturing section is just one story; a basement underlies much of the building.[2] Some of the architecture, including the little-changed lobby, employs Art Deco details; in conjunction with the general Streamline Moderne appearance,[3] the Art Deco emphasizes a sense of modernism with few parallels in the Cincinnati area,[2] especially because the style's application to an industrial facility was unusual. The company promoted its use of highly mechanized production equipment at this facility;[3] its ability to produce 500 bottles each minute was highly touted.[2]

Post-bottling

Coca-Cola no longer employs the building for beverage production; it was later converted for the use of F&W Publications, and Xavier University acquired the property in early 2002. Renovations quickly began, with extra space being used for offices and rented to Cincinnati Country Day School after one of its buildings collapsed. In June 2004, the university announced that a gift from wealthy alumni would be used to convert the building into an alumni center with space for conferences, banquets, and other types of meetings.[5] Long before this time, the building had been granted exceptional recognition by the federal government: while still a manufacturing facility, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places because of its historically significant architecture. Hundreds of locations in Cincinnati are listed on the National Register, but the bottling plant's status was exceptional due to its young age; it was only about forty years old when designated,[1] and buildings younger than fifty years old can only qualify for designation in the most exceptional circumstances.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Cincinnati: A Guide to the Queen City and Its Neighbors. American Guide Series. Cincinnati: Wiesen-Hart, 1943, 316.
  3. 1 2 3 Owen, Lorrie K., ed. Dictionary of Ohio Historic Places. Vol. 1. St. Clair Shores: Somerset, 1999, 580.
  4. ↑ Coca-Cola Bottling Corporation, Ohio Historical Society, 2007. Accessed 2014-01-12.
  5. ↑ Plans Move Forward for Alumni Center Renovation, Xavier University, 2004-06-25. Accessed 2014-01-12.
  6. ↑ National Register Criteria for Evaluation, National Park Service. Accessed 2014-01-12.
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