Drake Hotel (Philadelphia)

Drake Hotel
Drake Hotel in February 2010
Location1512-1514 Spruce St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Coordinates39°56′49″N 75°10′3″W / 39.94694°N 75.16750°W / 39.94694; -75.16750
Built1928
Built byMurphy, Quigley
ArchitectRitter & Shay, Eric Fisher Wood
Architectural styleArt Deco, Spanish Baroque
NRHP reference No.78002446[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPSeptember 18, 1978
Designated PRHPOctober 6, 1977[2]

The Drake Hotel, a historic 375-foot-tall, 33-story luxury hotel located at 1512–1514 Spruce Street at the corner of S. Hicks Street between S. 15th and S. 16th Streets in the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was built in 1928–29 by the Murphy, Quigley Company and was designed by the architectural firm of Ritter and Shay in the Art Deco style with Spanish Baroque terra cotta ornamentation on themes surrounding Sir Francis Drake, including "dolphins, shells, sailing vessels and globes." The building is topped by a terra cotta dome.[3]

The building was originally proposed to be 28-stories, and the demolition work took place in April 1928. The first steel column was placed on site on September 1, 1928 and just four months later stunt reporter Vivian Shirley went to the top of the unfinished building on January 29, 1929. It was originally scheduled to open in June 1929, but the developers stated it was ready for occupancy on September 11, 1929.

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 18, 1978. It was added to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places on October 6, 1977.[2] In 1998, the building was extensively renovated and converted to condominiums as "The Drake".[4]

In 2016, the building's ballroom was renovated into a two-theater complex by InterAct Theatre Company, who operate the space and share it with PlayPenn, Inis Nua Theatre, Simpatico, and Azuka Theatre.[5] The Proscenium has 121 seats, while the Louis Bluver Theatre is a black box space with a capacity of 65-80 people.[6]

See also

References

Notes

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ a b "PRHP: List of properties with OPA-compliant addresses" (PDF). Philadelphia Historical Commission. Retrieved July 3, 2013.
  3. ^ Gallery, John Andrew, ed. (2004), Philadelphia Architecture: A Guide to the City (2nd ed.), Philadelphia: Foundation for Architecture, ISBN 0962290815, p.106
  4. ^ Richard J. Webster (October 1977). National Register of Historic Places Registration: Pennsylvania SP Drake Hotel. National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved January 3, 2026. (Downloading may be slow.)
  5. ^ Salisbury, Stephan (January 19, 2016). "Drake Center ready to stage latest act of Philadelphia's theater romance". Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
  6. ^ "Theatre Rentals". Interact Theatre Company. n.d. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
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