{"nrhp_refnum":"10000958","name":"Calumet, The","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"46-58 W Chippewa St / 233 Franklin St","address_restricted":false,"city":"Buffalo","county":"Erie County","state":"NY","lat":42.89216383100006,"lon":-78.87472236799994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2010-11-29","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story steel-frame commercial block at 46-58 West Chippewa Street and 233 Franklin Street in downtown Buffalo, Erie County, New York, designed in 1906 by Esenwein and Johnson for Robert K. Root.","why_significant":"The building is presented as a distinctive example of glazed architectural terra cotta design in the Sullivanesque style. Its white and burnt sienna ornament of reeds, leaves and flowers plays on the meaning of the word 'calumet' and shows the moldable, durable qualities of terra cotta. It is also tied to the work of architects Esenwein and Johnson.","narrative":"At the corner of Chippewa and Franklin Streets in downtown Buffalo stands a three-story commercial block designed in 1906 by the architects August Esenwein and James Johnson for Robert K. Root. Its steel frame is clad on the street fronts in glazed terra cotta, white with burnt sienna accents. Vertical piers carry molded reeds, leaves and flowers, while Chicago-style pivoting windows undulate between them. The ornament appears to play on the word 'calumet,' which derives from a reed-stemmed ceremonial pipe. The building originally held shops on the ground floor, offices on the second and a social club on the third. Changes include removal of the projecting cornice around 1965, replacement of storefronts with aluminum systems, and a reduction from six retail bays to three. Bars and a restaurant now occupy the ground floor. The building is recognized for its inventive Sullivanesque terra cotta work and its connection to a prominent Buffalo architectural firm.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"August Carl Esenwein and James Addison Johnson (Esenwein & Johnson)","architectural_style":"Late 19th & Early 20th Century American Movements: Chicago, Sullivanesque","criteria":[],"status_note":"Altered over time: the cornice was removed about 1965 and storefronts were reduced from six to three. Ground-floor space is occupied by a bar and a restaurant.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:48.289642-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/10000958.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/10000958/fead75b2be-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/10000958/fead75b2be-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"isabelle","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Calumet_Bldg_Buffalo_NY_Oct_10.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">isabelle</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Calumet_Bldg_Buffalo_NY_Oct_10.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75317574","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Calumet","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7721044"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/erie-county/calumet-the-10000958/"}