{"nrhp_refnum":"02001102","name":"Kress Building","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"705 Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Houston","county":"Harris County","state":"TX","lat":29.75885930000004,"lon":-95.36287406299994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-10-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"An eight-story, L-shaped commercial block at 705 Main Street, at the southeast corner of Main and Capitol Streets in downtown Houston, Texas, built in 1913 for S.H. Kress & Co. It is clad in terra cotta over a reinforced concrete frame.","why_significant":"The building is nominated at the local level under Criterion A in the area of Commerce. It is a lasting remnant of downtown Houston's early 20th-century commercial development and of the S.H. Kress & Co. five-and-dime chain. It was one of the company's largest buildings and was unusual for including professional offices.","narrative":"Rising eight stories at the corner of Main and Capitol Streets in downtown Houston, this 1913 building was designed by Seymour Burrell, staff architect for S.H. Kress & Co. Its reinforced concrete frame is covered almost entirely in terra cotta, with gray terra cotta imitating stone at the base and white terra cotta above, decorated with brightly colored ornament in ochre and green. The facades follow Beaux-Arts habits of symmetry and a three-part vertical arrangement, with Italian Renaissance detailing. A four-story annex to the east began as the 1910 Gas Building and was remodeled by Kress in 1952-53. A 1983 renovation changed the storefronts and removed the original cornice and parapet, yet the building keeps enough integrity to show its past. It is listed for its role in Houston's commerce. It was one of the company's largest buildings, included professional offices, and reflects the city's early 20th-century growth. It now contains lofts and retail space.","period_of_significance":"1913-1952","architect_builder":"Architect (1913) = Seymour Burrell; Builder (1913) = Buchanan & Gilder","architectural_style":"Late 19th and Early 20th Century Revivals: Renaissance Revival","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Current functions are multiple dwelling (St. Germain Lofts) and retail store. A 1983 renovation altered the storefronts and removed the cornice and parapet.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:23.864398-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/66/9724/40972466/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/02001102.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02001102/ec5c76fcaa-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02001102/ec5c76fcaa-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 3.0","author":"Ed Uthman, Houston, Texas, USA","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kress_Building_Downtown_Houston_(HDR).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Ed Uthman, Houston, Texas, USA</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kress_Building_Downtown_Houston_(HDR).jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40972466","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S._H._Kress_and_Co._Building_(Houston)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q21016147"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/harris-county/kress-building-02001102/"}