Glen Echo Park, Arcade, 7300 MacArthur Boulevard, Glen Echo, Montgomery County, MD

Significance: Built during the last, major construction campaign in the amusement park at Glen Echo, the Arcade was modeled after the adjoining Administration Building designed by Philadelphia architect Edward Schoeppe in 1940. Schoeppe's structure was modernistic in style, featuring low relief, colorful ornament crafted from man-made materials and sleek, smooth lines characteristic of the art deco milieu. Besides complementing the existing entrance canopy and Administration Building credited to Schoeppe, it was only fitting that the structure housing the "latest equipment in arcade pleasure giving mechanical attraction" exhibit one of the most self-conciously, forward-looking architectural trends: art deco. The architect for the new arcade was Joseph S. Hart and it cost around $30,000 to construct. When it opened for the 1948 season, the Arcade was host to a skee-ball alley, a shooting gallery, and to sportland, A decade later the Arcade was expanded.
Unprocessed Field note material exists for this structure: N695
Survey number: HABS MD-1080-C
Building/structure dates: 1947-1948 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1958 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: after 1970 Subsequent Work
National Register of Historic Places NRIS Number: 84001850