History
The Andrew Mellon Building was built by Stanley McCormick, heir to the International Harvester fortune, in 1915 and completed in 1917. Washington-based Jules Henri de Sibour was architect of the building. This was one of the first Washington apartment buildings for luxury living. The structure was meant to fit in with other Beaux-Arts buildings in the Dupont Circle neighborhood. The building's composition is three principal elevations, to serve as a pivot point for a residential boulevard and two street intersections. The six units it originally contained had quarters for more than forty servants. Some of the Capital's most distinguished personalities once lived here. A partial listing of these residents, from the Historic American Buildings Survey, includes:
- Thomas F. Ryan, 1920–1922
- Robert Woods Bliss, 1920–1923
- Edwin T. Meredith, 1921
- Andrew W. Mellon, 1922–1937
- Sumner Welles, 1921–1927
- Alanson B. Houghton, 1930–1934
The millionaire industrialist Andrew Mellon is perhaps most significant of these past occupants. He was Secretary of the Treasury from 1921 to 1932. This was the longest tenure since Albert Gallatin. Mellon made this his residence shortly after taking on that role, occupying the top floor from 1922 until his death in 1937. Among his accomplishments include authoring the "Mellon Plan" which stimulated the economic boom of the 1920s, and founding the National Gallery of Art. In 1936 Mellon paid 21 million dollars for paintings and sculptures owned by Sir Joseph Duveen, an art dealer leasing the apartment below. At the time this was the largest art transaction on record.
After 1941 the building was used for offices and eventually partitioned. The property was conveyed by deed from Katherine Dexter McCormick to the American Council on Education on March 31, 1950. Later the property was conveyed to The Brookings Institution on January 2, 1970. Finally, the building was sold to the National Trust for Historic Preservation on October 28, 1976.
The Andrew Mellon Building was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1976.
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