So, what does an architecturally minded teacher do on Spring Break when she can't afford to travel further than downtown? Well, she grabs her "Historic Knoxville: A walking and touring guide" (circa 1990) and takes a self-guided tour of the scruffy little city!
Okay, enough of this 3rd person crap. But seriously, I've been waiting for a nice sunny day to come along so I could tour lovely Knoxville! I'm going to try to post 1 building at a time, with a little background.
Today's building is the Medical Arts Building, at 603 Main Street. Designed by Manley and Young of Lexington in 1929/1930, it used to house medical offices, hence the name. At first glance, this gothic style building looks pretty typical, but check out the doors: beautiful ornamental buttresses and Tudor arches, specifically above the garage and main doors. According to my guide book, "the terra cotta facade is probably the "best example of terra cotta in the city". It's currently used for offices and, as an aside, is the building my mom looks out onto every day from her office in the Post Office across the street!
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