Asheville Sights: Architecture

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Asheville is nationally renowned for its unique architecture, especially downtown and around the Biltmore Estate. The city suffered greatly during the Great Depression, and consequently little development happened during the time. This actually had a positive effect, as the city's famous Art Deco Architecture of the Roaring 20's was saved from destruction. Therefore, today, Asheville boasts the nations most complete collection of Art Deco structures. Other architectural styles, of course, are present in abundance throughout the city; from the Neo-Gothic Jackson Building "Skyscraper" to the Modern BB&T Tower.

Buncombe County Courthouse

• Battery Park Hotel, 1 Battle Sq. A 14-story building faced with brick, limestone and terra cotta trim with a Mission Revival style roof, erected in 1924.
• The Biltmore Estate, 1 Approach Rd, ☎ 1-800-624-1575, www.biltmore.com. A French Renaissance-inspired chateau; with over 250 rooms, it is the largest single family home in the U.S. and the largest privately-owned house in the world, just a few minutes outside the city and should be on any visitor's itinerary. Basic admission includes access to the fabulous gardens, stables, expansive hiking trails, winery and self-guided house tour. Adults $45-$60, Youth price half-admission, Children 9 and under are free.
• Buncombe County Courthouse, 60 Court Sq. M-F 8AM-6PM. Completed in 1928, the outside features complex setbacks, window groupings and overlay of Neo-Classical Revival ornamentation. The Neo-Classical interior lobby contains a sweeping marble staircase, bronze and glass screens, a coffered ceiling with ornate plasterwork and a mosaic tile floor.
• The City Building, www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=ashevillecityhall-asheville-nc-usa. Designed by Art Deco architect Douglas Ellington and completed in 1927, the City Building is constructed out of Georgia Pink marble, brick, and terra cotta. The steeped, octagonal shaped roof is the logo of the City of Asheville.

Asheville City Hall

• Drhumor Building. The Drhumor (pronounced "drummer") is a boldly detailed, Romanesque Revival style building constructed in 1895.
• Flat Iron Building, 20 Battery Park Ave, ☎ +1 828 258-3999, flatironbldg.com. 8AM-5:30PM. A uniquely triangular shaped building bordering Wall Street and Battery Park Avenue constructed in 1926.
• Grove Arcade, 1 Page Ave, www.grovearcade.com. M-Sa 10AM-6PM, Su 12PM-5PM. Commissioned by Dr. E. W. Grove, the Grove Arcade is an elaborate Tudoresque building occupying an entire city block. It is particularly worth noting, as it was, when it was built in 1927 by architect Charles N. Parker, one of the nation's most unique and interesting buildings. On each side of this city landmark, four giant arches allow entrance into the building. On the main side facing the equally impressive Victorian Battery Park Hotel, are two monumental gryphons, guarding the entrance into the expansive interior, which features oak shopfronts, spiral staircases, and opulence around every corner. Today, it serves as as an influential public market with several restaurants, vendors, and mountain craft shops.
• Grove Park Inn, 290 Macon Ave, www.groveparkinn.com. Completed in 1913, this historic resort hotel is an important example of the Arts and Crafts style.
• Jackson Building, www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=jacksonbuilding-asheville-nc-usa. Bordered by South Market Street and South Pack Square, completed in 1925. A Neo-Gothic style skyscraper complete with gargoyles and a bell tower.
• Masonic Temple, 80 Broadway St. Features robust brickwork and a tall portico of paired Ionic columns. A three-story, blind arched window is on its Woodfin Street side.
• S & W building, 52-58 Patton Ave. Another Art Deco masterpiece designed by architect Douglas Ellington.
• Thomas Wolfe House, 48 Spruce St, ☎ +1 828 253-8304, www.wolfememorial.com. Tu-Sa 9AM-12PM, Su 1PM-5PM. A sprawling frame Queen Anne-influenced house immortalized in the epic autobiographical novel Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe.
• Vance Monument, www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=222991. Stands about 10 stories high, in the middle of Pack Square, Asheville's version of Times Square, Place de la Concorde and Piccadilly Circus. It is the heart of both downtown and the entire city.
• YMI Building, at the corner of South Market and Eagle St. M-Sa 10AM-5PM. A simplified English Tudor Cottage style with pebble-dashed walls, red brick quoin trim, multi-pane windows and hipped roofs.

Churches:

Basilica of St. Lawrence

• Basilica of St. Lawrence, 97 Haywood St, www.saintlawrencebasilica.org. Designed and built in 1905, the Basilica is on the National Register of Historic Places and was elevated in status to a Minor Basilica in 1993 by Pope John Paul II. Features the largest freestanding elliptical dome in North America. This place is gorgeous and a must-see.
• Central United Methodist Church, 27 Church St. Erected in 1902, the imposing limestone church presents Romanesque Revival style massing and forms, but the detailing more closely reflects the Gothic Revival style. A five-bay loggia, set between two pinnacled towers, fronts the large, gable-roofed auditorium.
• First Baptist Church, 5 Oak St. In Art Deco/Romantic style, Douglas Ellington's first big commission in Asheville. A beautiful distinctive dome with a copper cupola cap.
• First Presbyterian Church, 40 Church St, www.fpcasheville.org. Commissioned in 1884, the Gothic Revival style brick nave and tower feature deep-corbelled cornices, hood-molded windows and blind arcading at the eaves.
• Mt. Zion Baptist Church, 47 Eagle St. A redbrick late Victorian Gothic church featuring a tin-shingled roof where three towers are topped by ornamental sheet-metal finials. A large number of Art Glass windows ornament the towers and walls. Built in 1919.
• St. Matthias Episcopal Church, 1 Dundee St. A Gothic-style building with a gable roof nave. The brick walls are laid with a darker shade of headers presenting a horizontal texture to the building's surface on every face. The interior contains a rich display of well maintained dark woodwork fashioned in various Gothic motifs. The pulpit, lectern, altar and other furnishings are all original to the church and are decorated with trefoil arch panels, quatrefoil incisions and other Gothic elements.
• Trinity Episcopal Church, 60 Church St, www.trinityasheville.org. Designed in 1912, the Tudor Gothic Revival style brick building with granite trim features a simple, gable-roofed sanctuary with transepts and a short corner tower.