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West Virginia » Lower Ohio and Kanawha Valleys » Huntington » Downtown » Central Huntington Garage

Central Huntington Garage

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1927. 920–922 5th Ave. (north side of 5th Ave. between 9th and 10th sts.)
  • (West Virginia Collection within the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division)

Architects of present-day parking structures could learn much from this building. Commercial display windows at street level, three floors of standard office windows between dark red brick walls above, colorful terra-cotta details, a green-tiled overhang, and a Mediterranean architectural flavor all seek to disguise the building's basic function. The only clue is at the eastern end, where a sign identifying it as the Central Huntington Garage tops a broad opening. Inside, behind shallow stores and offices, multilevel parking decks provide space for four hundred cars. When it opened, the garage provided a car wash, fuel, and, if requested, uniformed chauffeurs for its customers. Smart suburban businessmen who rented offices received a parking space on the same level as their place of business.

Writing Credits

Author: 
S. Allen Chambers Jr.

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