This building has a unique history in that it was built to serve as a garage for the production of electric automobiles.
It was built by Alfred O. Whitmore, an early manufacturer of electric cars. He was born in Ohio in 1877. In 1888 he moved to Colorado and in 1894 he settled in Provo, Utah. There he was employed by the Telluride Power Company. Next he worked for the Hunns Company and took part in the erection of the first power plant for long distance transmission. In 1903, he began manufacturing electric cars and two years later he moved his operation to Salt Lake City. Between 1905 and 1920 when production ceased, he was the largest electric car dealer and manufacturer in the area.
In 1914 he produced the first commercial oxygen in the state. Two years later he opened the Whitmore Oxygen Company, with himself as manager and president, He married Jennetta Richards in 1901, and died in Salt Lake City in 1943. Today the Whitmore Oxygen Company still bears his name.
It served as the offices of the Whitmore Oxygen Company until 1975.
Constructed in 1930, this building is significant as the only apartment building on South Temple built by local Jewish real estate magnate Julius Rosenberg. A three-story apartment block in the Federal Revival style, it was designed by architect Bernard Mecklenburg. Mecklenburg also designed the Maryland Apartments at 893 South Temple; he is credited with design work on the Cathedral of the Madeleine and Holy Cross Hospital as well.
One of the historic districts in Salt Lake, The East South Temple Historic District consists of that part of South Temple Street from State Street (100 East) to Virginia Street (1350 East) containing 10 1/2 large blocks on the south and 20 small blocks on the north, The street slopes gradually from east to west, and marks the boundary between the flatter areas of the original settlement and the steeper “dry bench” of the Avenues to the north. South Temple was the first stately residential boulevard in Utah. The district consists of that part of the street which continues to display many fine old homes of both architectural and historical significance. A. variety of buildings exists in the district, including large mansions, carriage houses, churches, commercial and office buildings, a school, hospital, medical clinics, clubhouses, apartment buildings and gas stations. The density of buildings per blockscape ranges from 1 to 12 with an average of 4.7 buildings per block elevation. Natural and geographic features are not prominent in the district.
The district consists primarily of large, high-style residences built from the late 1880s through 1915. There are also a few small vernacular residences which survive, though moderately altered, as remnants of the street’s pioneer period. Larger buildings before 1930 include major religious architecture (cathedral of the Madeleine, First Presbyterian Church, Masonic Temple), as well as large, significant apartment projects (Eagle Gate, Maryland). A. number of buildings have been erected along South Temple Street since the historic period. Some of these, particularly the earlier structures, are architecturally compatible with the period buildings. Many of the most recent larger structures are inconsistent with the residential character of the street.
A large number of architectural styles are represented on South Temple. Many of the buildings are the best examples of their styles in Utah, as well as the best residential work of the architects who designed them. Examples include:
South Temple is significant as the first stately residential boulevard in Utah and remains today, much of it still residential, as a reminder of a lifestyle that is gone. It served as the only primary east-west route in early settlement days between the city and Red Butte Canyon, and Fort Douglas (established in 1862). The buildings which line this street from Third East to Virginia Street are unique reflections of some of the people who have greatly influenced the history and development of the state of Utah. Included in this group of people are: senators, governors, mayors and other political figures; mining men, who made their fortunes in the small mining towns surrounding the Salt Lake Valley and then used their new wealth to build impressive, ostentatious mansions for their families; and immigrant merchants who became financially successful. Along the street are many fine structures of both architectural and historical significance. The excellence of design and craftsmanship, the landscaping, and the diversity of periods and styles represented, sets the street apart from any other area of Salt Lake City.
Historic Homes and Buildings in the South Temple Historic District
South Temple includes some of the best work by Utah’s major architects. Richard Kletting’s all-concrete Classical Revival mansion for Enos Wall is one of the largest of Kletting’s residential designs. Several of Frederick Male’s finest residences (including the Downey House, the Keith-Brown Mansion and the Markland house) and his Renaissance Revival Alta Club are on South Temple. Henry Ives Cobb, the New York architect who designed the Boston and Newhouse buildings on Exchange Place, did the Terry House, one of the most elaborate and academic Colonial-Georgian Revival houses in Utah. A number of other buildings on South Temple are among the very finest examples of their styles built in Utah and these include the Cathedral of the Madeleine, (C.M. Neuhausen) the First Presbyterian Church (Walter E. Ware), the Kearns Mansion (C.M. Neuhausen) and the Ladies Literary Club (Ware and Treganza). Two of the most architecturally significant apartment blocks are on South Temple, the Eagle Gate and the Maryland (Bernard 0. Mecklenburg). The loss of significant buildings on South Temple, attributable in large part to the zoning changes of 1935 and 1959, shows the continuing prestige of South Temple addresses — even though the newer architecture does not reach the standards of the old.
The South Temple Historic District includes a significant deviation from the original plat of the city in Haxton Place. Purchased by James T. Keith, a Salt Lake dentist, Haxton Place is reportedly modeled after London’s street of the same name and was laid out by Englishman Thomas G. Griffin. Although a simple cul-de-sac with two pairs of stone and iron pillars at the entrance, Haxton Place is distinguished by the unique variants of various Colonial Revival designs built there.
South Temple became important as the major traffic route between Fort Douglas and the city after 1862. During this period the roadbed was crooked and covered with deep, fine dust ground by wheels of military wagons and wagons going to Red Butte Canyon for building stone. Peddlers and merchants made frequent use of the street, which was also a parade route.
The full force of Victorian architecture began to express itself on South Temple in the 1870s. The Gardo House, built in 1876 and designed by Joseph Ridges and William H. Folsom for Brigham Young’s wife, Amelia Folsom, was a splendid French Second Empire monument, unfortunately razed in 1926 for the Federal Reserve Bank. Old adobe homes were gradually replaced with larger structures and lots were subdivided, reducing open spaces and eliminating orchards.
The gaslight era (the 1880s) was no more evident than on South Temple. Earlier kerosene lights were replaced by gas lights supported by fancy metal standards. Electric lights appeared by 1900. Modern water and sewer systems were also installed in the 1890s, replacing the pioneer water ditches which had served for irrigation and culinary purposes.
The period from 1889-1893 marked the Utah Building Boom. Several fine residences in the new Victorian style — Shingle Style, Chateauesque and Eastlake — were built. Perhaps the period of heaviest growth for South Temple was 1889-1901 when the nouveaux-riche mining, railroad and commercial tycoons built opulent mansions on the street. Government officials like Mayor James Glendenning also were attracted to the street. Towers, pinnacles, vast porches and balconies, carved stone decoration, stained glass windows and imported materials, styles and craftsmen characterized the period.
Between 1900 and 1910 South Temple’s best known residences were built in 1900-1901. These include the mansions of Thomas Kearns, Enos Wall, and David Keith. Late Victorian and Neo-Classical Revival styles dominated the architecture. The dirt street, for so many years an inconvenience, was finally paved, first with brick and later with asphalt, in the early 1900s. The old rock wall which surrounded the city and ran along part of South Temple was dismantled and the orchards totally disappeared. By this time, oxen, mule and horse teams were being replaced by gas-powered automobiles. Jitney auto buses were gone. The street had the contrasts of beauty and utility, its palatial mansions serviced by a network of metal tracks, telephone poles and a thick web of electrical wires. Old church landmarks, including the Tithing Office, were replaced by the Bishop’s Building and Deseret Gym on North Temple and Hotel Utah on South Temple. The homes of early church leaders were replaced by turn-of-the-century apartments and club buildings: Eagle Gate Apartments, Covey and Buckingham Apartments, B.P.O.E. (Elks) Club, the Alta Club and the University Club. The change in land use spread to the east where older homes were replaced by the Romanesque Catholic Cathedral and the Gothic Presbyterian church.
This ornate mansion was built in 1904 for Matthew and Angelena Walker. Matthew Walker, an English immigrant, was the youngest of the four brothers whose mercantile, banking, and mining enterprises made them some of Utah’s most influential men. Designed by local architects Walter Ware and Alberto Treganza, the Italian Renaissance Revival three-story 18,700-square-foot home, cost an estimated $275,000 to construct. It was host to frequent social events, including Sunday evening recitals by local and national musicians in the dramatic two-story main hall capped with a magnificent stained glass skylight.
Following the death of Matthew, the house was sold in 1923 to David Keith, Jr., and in 1941 to the Aviation Club of Utah, an organization of military and civil aviators. It was converted to offices with construction of the large office addition and parking structure. Very invasive changes were also made to the highly decorative interior. On the exterior, many historic features were removed or covered. Even with these modifications, the building was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 as part of the South Temple Historic District.
In 1999 the building was purchased by Philip G. McCarthey who started a complicated, multi-year restoration guided by local preservation architects MJSA Architecture and carefully executed by Lowell Construction. The mansion once again features cream-colored stucco walls with brick quoins and arches; a red clay tile-hipped roof with decorative eaves, ridge caps, and chimney tops; a large veranda at the front, an enclosed conservatory to the west, and a porte cochere entrance at the east, all with second story balconies. Large intricate windows and dormers allow daylight into the restored interiors that required two years of effort to completely upgrade the building structure, install new mechanical systems, and restore the extensive historic finishes and features. The impact of the modern addition was diminished with a recessed balcony and a long strip skylight that now separates the addition from the historic mansion. The historic entry with semi-circular entry stairs was restored and the driveway installed.
Its historic role as a focus and location of social, civic, and commercial exchange has also been significantly restored. The mansion’s physical restoration was celebrated on the new owner’s 50th birthday on July 16, 2002. In addition to Mr. McCarthey’s many businesses including insurance, financial services, and the Salt Lake Tribune Publishing Company, the home is the site of many charitable events, reinforcing its important role in the great community.
The comprehensive restoration received a preservation award from the Utah Heritage Foundation in 2002. The Walker-McCarthey Mansion new stands as an outstanding example of historic preservation and restoration in the South Temple Historic District.
Constructed in 1896, this large, two-story, Victorian Eclectic style dwelling was built for Frederick C. Gentsch. He was the general superintendent of the Pacific Express Company and owned the home until 1900, when it was sold to Ezra Thompson, Jr. With mining interests in Park City, Thompson also served on the Park City Council. Beginning in 1900, he was elected to two terms as the mayor of Salt Lake City. He also had large real estate holdings in Salt Lake City and was director of the National Bank of the Republic. The house remained in the Thompson family until 1943, when it was sold to the Children’s Service Society who owned the property for many years. A major restoration of the property was completed in 2008 by current owner Kevin L. Bott Family with Max J. Smith of MJSA Architects.
The Masonic Temple is the meeting place of a fraternal organization called the Masons. The word mason refers to a person who builds with brick or stone. The Masons began as a club for builders in the Middle Ages (500 – 1,500 AD). Today, the Masons sponsor many charitable activities such as Shriners Hospital, which provides free medical care for children with special needs.
The Masonic Temple is built in an architectural style called Egyptian Revival. This style became popular for a short time after further exploration of the Egyptian pyramids and the discovery of King Tutankhamen’s tomb in 1922.
The Masonic Temple, is a large Egyptian Revival Style structure built according to Masonic Law and tradition, The measurements of the building and the dimensions of the interior follow the exact number system laid out in Masonic ritual. Because of the importance of the numbers three, five and seven in Masonry, these numbers were used as a base for the design, Since the number seven was considered the perfect, number, seven and numbers divisible by seven were used in all spacing and measurement. The columns on the building are fourteen feet apart (or multiples of seven) . The Temple is three stories high, to signify the three degrees of Masonry.
The Temple’s base is made of seven finished courses of ashlar of Utah granite. On the ground floor are non-ritualistic rooms for banquets, offices, etc, The exterior is of Egyptian Style architecture to allow for figures and inscriptions to appear and not give away their significance, There are three entrances, flanking the entrances is a pair of sphinx carved of Utah granite t The walls are of large brick laid in block fashion.
This building has always been the home of the Salt Lake Masons. The design of this Masonic Temple was derived from Masonic numerology and ritual. This building was dedicated on November 20, 1927. The architect, Carl W, Scott, and the building committee went to other cities to view other Masonic Temples before the design for this one was chosen, The Salt Lake Masons decided to design their Temple according to Masonic ritual, which deals mainly with the work of the builders of King Solomon’s Temple, One of the major problems encountered by the architect was to build it according to Masonic law without giving away any Masonic secrets, Many plans for the building were abandoned entirely because there was no way to use them and conceal their meaning. The cornerstone was laid in an elaborate ceremony on the afternoon of November 5, 1926, with the Masons wearing’formal top hats and tails. The public is only allowed in certain lodge rooms, where people who are not masons will not understand what they see. Each of the three degrees of Masonry has its own meeting room.
Emanuel & Fanny Kahn Mansion / The Anniversary Inn
This house was the home of Emanuel and Fanny Kahn. Emanuel and his brother, Samuel, were some of the first Jewish immigrants to settle in Utah. They started the Kahn Brothers store which became one of the largest grocery stores in Salt Lake City.
The Kahn Mansion is built in the Victorian Queen Anne style of architecture. Queen Anne buildings are very ornate and have many details and decorations that catch your eye. The fancy wood carving on the porch is commonly referred to as gingerbread detailing.
This Victorian Shingle-Style house was designed by architect Frederick Albert Hale and was built for Major George M. Downey in 1893. Mr. Hale was a prominent Salt Lake City architect who also designed the Alta Club, Keith-Brown Mansion, and former Salt Lake City Public Library located on State Street. Mr. Downey is one of only a few locals who played a considerable role in the Civil War. A native of Maryland, Mr. Downey was educated at military academies in the South, but joined the Army of the Potomac at age 19 in 1861 and fought for the Union. He was recognized by President Lincoln for his service at Gettsburg and later promoted to the rank of Major. In 1888 he retired from the Army and moved to Salt Lake City to serve as President of the Commercial National Bank and later as Vice-President of the Rocky Mountain Bell Telephone Company.
This building, designed by the architectural firm of Ware and Treganza, was constructed 1912-1913 for the Ladies Literary Club. Organized in 1877 the club is one of the oldest women’s clubs in the United States. The club sponsors projects to enhance the culture and beauty of Salt Lake City.
Constructed in 1899, the home was the residence of William Hatfield, a stockbroker, until 1905 when John C. Lynch acquired the home. In 1973, the Sister of the Holy Cross purchased the home from Lawrence Brennan. The Sisters dedicated their home to prayer and peace and placed this marker during their centennial year of service in Utah, 1975.
