Grinnell Company-General Fire Extinquisher Company Complex
Why it's listed
Built in 1929 and 1930 for the Grinnell Company, the largest North American maker of automatic sprinklers and other fire protection products, this two-building complex sits on West Morehead Street southwest of downtown Charlotte. A two-story brick office building with restrained classical detailing faces the street. Behind it, a massive one-story factory stretches along the former Piedmont and Northern Railway line. The factory has a steel frame, heavy Pratt roof trusses, continuous steel sash windows and sawtooth monitors that light a vast open floor. Greenville, South Carolina, architect J. E. Sirrine designed the complex. It was listed for its role in Charlotte's industrial growth, when textile mills created demand for fire protection equipment, and for its architecture, which shows early twentieth century factory design and an efficient layout of detached, one-story buildings. Only seven pre-World War II industrial or warehouse properties remain on the street. Grinnell operated here until 1999, and the buildings have since been rehabilitated as offices.
Significance in brief: It is locally significant under Criterion A for industry, as an example of the manufacturing and distribution facilities that made Charlotte the leading industrial center of the Carolinas and supplied the Piedmont textile industry. It is significant under Criterion C for architecture, for its steel-framed, sawtooth-roofed factory and its post-World War I site layout. It is one of only seven surviving pre-World War II industrial or warehouse properties on West Morehead Street.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 03001275, listed December 10, 2003. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 1431 W. Morehead St., Charlotte |
|---|---|
| County | Mecklenburg County |
| Listed | December 10, 2003 |
| Reference number | 03001275 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1929-1953 |
| Architect / builder | Sirrine, J.E. |
| Architectural style | Manufacturing Building: Industrial; Office Building: Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Century American Movements: Commercial Style |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Industry, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Grinnell closed its Charlotte operation in 1999. The property has undergone a certified rehabilitation for office use, and the exterior is largely unchanged. |
| Acreage | 1.7 |
| Coordinates | 35.22852, -80.86639 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 03001275.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q19462098
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.