User:RevelationDirect/Sandbox

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by RevelationDirect (talk | contribs) at 11:35, 7 January 2025 (History: Wording). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

  1. Get Idea
  2. Find Reliable Sources
  3. Create Template
  4. Format Citations
  5. Begin with Phrases
  6. Convert to Sentences
  7. Re-Read Next Day
  8. Spell Check in Word
  9. Doublecheck All Links
  10. Re-Read on Phone
  11. PUBLISH!!!!!
  12. WikiProjects on Talk Page
  13. Link Other Articles to New Article
  14. Create Redirects to New Article
  15. Thank copy editors

YMCA Building (Shreveport, Louisiana)

YMCA, Downtown Branch
 
Front of the building, left, with twin campaniles
 
 
 
 
Location400 McNeil Street, Shreveport, Louisiana 71101
Coordinates32°30′46″N 93°45′05″W / 32.51278°N 93.75139°W / 32.51278; -93.75139
Built1925
ArchitectClarence W. King
Architectural styleItalian Renaissance Revival
Websitewww.ymcanwla.org/locations/downtown-ymca/
Part ofShreveport Commercial Historic District (First Boundary Increase) (ID97000437)
NRHP reference No.91000621
Significant dates
Added to NRHPMay 28, 1991
Designated CPMay 16, 1997[1]

The YMCA Building is a historic building in downtown Shreveport, Louisiana, built in 1925.[2] The National Register of Historic Places listed the Young Men’s Christian Association structure in 1982.[3]

History

The YMCA first started as a group in Shreveport in the 1860s but did not formally incorporate until 1922. The next year, the group raised $545,000 to build this building which opened in 1925.[4] Monroe E. Dodd, the First Baptist Church pastor and Edward Jacobs, the National Bank of Shreveport founder, both strongly advocated for the project.[5][2]

In the 1960s, the YMCA added a third and fourth story for new bedrooms and converted the old residences on the second story into exercise rooms.[3] The group stopped renting the rooms though and the floors are now vacant.[6] In 2017, barrels of food from 1963 were found in an unused wing of the building, left over from Cold War Civil Defense preparations.[7]

In recent years, the facility attracts downtown office workers to work out and provides exercise classes.[8][9] In 2020, the YMCA renovated the building which included updating the front desk area and CrossFit room, replacing lockers, and converting the underutilized social room into a yoga and Pilates studio.[2]

Architecture

 
Side entrance along Travis Street

The Villa Medici in Rome, completed in 1544, inspired the building's Italian Renaissance Revival design by architect Clarence W. King. The four-story building is built using blond brick and cast concrete with quoining along the corners.[5]

The front facade includes twin rooftop campaniles with a balustrade running between. On the front and side, the ground story has rows of arched opening each with double arched windows with a central colonnette. Between these are oeil-de-boeuf motifs. The main entrance consists of a triple arch opening flanked by pilasters and topped with a segmental pediment. Gold and blue terra cotta decorations appear on both the campaniles and the entrance.[3]

Inside, a central lobby consists of octagonal piers leading up to a plaster mock groin vaulted ceiling. Behind the lobby, a small cortile with a fountain set in a tiled niche. The rest of the original interior included two gymnasiums, numerous bedrooms on the upper floors, and a pool in the basement.[3]

See also

References

  1. ^ Fricker, Donna (November 1996). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Downtown Shreveport Historic District". First Boundary Increase. Washington, D.C.: National Park Service. Retrieved January 4, 2025 – via National Archives.
  2. ^ a b c Watson, Jimmy (July 23, 2020). "Shreveport's downtown YMCA nears finish of $300K renovation project". The Shreveport Times. Gannett. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d Tassin, Leslie (April 18, 1991). "National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form: YMCA, Downtown Branch". Washington, D.C.: National Park Service. Retrieved January 4, 2025 – via Louisiana Office of Cultural Development.
  4. ^ Boucher, Makenzie (September 25, 2022). "YMCA coming to South Shreveport. Here's what you need to know about Camp Forbing". The Shreveport Times. Gannett. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  5. ^ a b Todaro, Joe (August 10, 2020). "Downtown YMCA". 318 Forum. Shreveport, Louisiana: Venture Publishing. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  6. ^ Patton, Devon (October 9, 2015). "Legend says spirit haunts downtown Shreveport YMCA". KTBS-TV. Shreveport, Louisiana: Wray Properties Trust. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  7. ^ Wildsmith, Henrietta (December 14, 2017). "Inside the unused wings of the downtown YMCA building". The Shreveport Times. Gannett. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  8. ^ Anderson, Scott "Scooter" (November 18, 2019). "YMCA". 318 Forum. Shreveport, Louisiana: Venture Publishing. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  9. ^ Benn, Domonique (January 22, 2015). "Knock It Off members spin the fat off". KSLA-TV. Shreveport, Louisiana: Gray Television. Retrieved January 4, 2025.

Category:National Register of Historic Places in Caddo Parish, Louisiana Category:Clubhouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Louisiana Category:Buildings and structures in Shreveport, Louisiana Category:Renaissance Revival architecture in Louisiana Category:Italian Renaissance Revival architecture in the United States Category:Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in Louisiana Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1925 Category:1925 establishments in Louisiana Category:YMCA buildings in the United States Category:Organizations based in Shreveport, Louisiana