{"nrhp_refnum":"80003607","name":"American Baptist Publication Society","other_names":["Crozer Building"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1420--1422 Chestnut St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Philadelphia","county":"Philadelphia","state":"PA","lat":39.950825751000025,"lon":-75.16491680699994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-06-27","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A nine-story commercial building at 1420-22 Chestnut Street in center city Philadelphia, built for the American Baptist Publication Society as a publishing house with printing presses. It replaced an earlier building on the same site that was damaged by fire in the mid-1890s.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building is an early solution to the tall building type and a major urban landmark in the Philadelphia skyline. It is presented as a leading example of the work of Frank Miles Day's firm, and as the start of a decades-long Philadelphia skyscraper design approach that relied on rich historical ornament at base and top. It also contributes to the Chestnut Street streetscape.","narrative":"Built in 1896-97 on Chestnut Street in center city Philadelphia, this nine-story steel-framed commercial building was designed by Frank Miles Day and Brother for the American Baptist Publication Society, which needed printing presses and offices on a site that ran 230 feet back to Sansom Street. It replaced an earlier building damaged by fire in the mid-1890s. Its terra cotta and pompeian brick skin and a taller front tower are detailed in the French Renaissance manner, with a multistory pyramidal roof and ornamented windows at the top. The building is regarded as an early answer to the tall office building, and its facade is considered a refined example of the rich base-and-top decoration that shaped Philadelphia skyscraper design for the following three decades. Day, a founding member of the T Square Club, was a significant figure in the local profession. The building also contributes to the Chestnut Street streetscape.","period_of_significance":"1896-1897","architect_builder":"Frank Miles Day & Bro. (architect); George W. Payne & Bro. (builder)","architectural_style":"French Renaissance","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"The original base arcade was replaced by marble decades ago, and the Sansom Street facade was similarly altered at the lower level; the Chestnut Street facade otherwise remains intact.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:32.40784-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/80003607.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80003607/631dfb4cec-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80003607/631dfb4cec-1600.webp","licence":"CC0","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baptist_Books_Philly.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baptist_Books_Philly.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"84003529","name":"Broad Street Historic District (Additional Documentation)","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/pennsylvania/broad-street-historic-district-additional-documentation-84003529/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71997268","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crozer_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4743137"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/philadelphia/american-baptist-publication-society-80003607/"}