The ''Rockefeller Building'' is a historic high-rise office building in downtown

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, United States, that was built between 1903 and 1905 and sits at the corner of West 6th and Superior Avenue across from the

Tower City Center Tower City Center is a large mixed-use facility in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, in its Public Square, Cleveland, Public Square. The facility is composed of a number of interconnected office buildings, including Terminal Tower, the Skylight Park mi ...

complex. The building stands at a height of 212 ft. (64.62 m), rising 17 stories above the street and is named after the

Standard Oil of Ohio The Standard Oil Company (Ohio) was an American petroleum industry, petroleum company that existed from 1870 to 1987. The company, known commonly as Sohio, was founded by John D. Rockefeller. It was established as one of the separate entities cre ...

founder

John D. Rockefeller John Davison Rockefeller Sr. (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was one of the List of richest Americans in history, wealthiest Americans of all time and one of the richest people in modern hist ...

. The massively wide building acts as an entry point into the very popular and populated

Warehouse District, Cleveland The Warehouse District is a nationally recognized historic district located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. It is roughly bound by Front Avenue, Superior Avenue, West 3rd Street, and West 10th Street. On September 30, 1982, it was added to the ...

. In 1973, the building was put on the list of

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. Rockefeller's companies were instrumental in helping shape Cleveland into an industrialized powerhouse. There are many places in the city and suburbs named after the man, including Rockefeller Park, the Rockefeller City Greenhouse, Rockefeller Lagoon, Rockefeller Center At, Rockefeller Road, and Rockefeller Avenue. However, his namesake building is the most lasting and recognizable epitaph to the Cleveland billionaire. Rockefeller was known in later life for his generosity towards his adoptive city; his legacy of either providing support to or directly funding Cleveland projects and parks is widely felt today.

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The Rockefeller name has been prominently displayed on the West 6th side of the building since 1905, except for a brief period when fellow Cleveland businessman Josiah Kirby (responsible for starting the gigantic Cleveland Discount Company mortgage firm in 1921 in Cleveland) bought the skyscraper from the Rockefellers in 1920 and subsequently changed the facade to the Kirby Building. However, Josiah Kirby angered the Rockefeller family by doing so. Thus, the Rockefeller family bought the building back and reverted it to the Rockefeller moniker in 1923. The signage is still quite visible today, having changed little in design since 1923.

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{{coord, 41, 29, 53, N, 81, 41, 51, W, display=title Skyscraper office buildings in Cleveland Buildings and structures in Cleveland Office buildings completed in 1905 Downtown Cleveland 1905 establishments in Ohio

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