St. Elizabeths Hospital, A Building, 2700 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, Southeast Redwood Street, Southeast, Washington, District of Columbia, DC

For an overview of the Lettered Buildings, see HABS DC-349-BY
Significance: The A Building (Building 74) is significant for its association with the treatment of mental illness on the St. Elizabeths Campus. As one of the primary administrative building for the campus in the twentieth century, the A Building formed an integral part of the function and use of the campus for the treatment of mental illness and related disabilities. The building was the setting of both day-to-day administrative functions as well as research into the causes and treatment of mental illness.

The A Building is also significant for its architectural design. Designed by the noted architectural firm of Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge, the Lettered buildings group is a notable example of the firm's designs for institutional campuses. Constructed in the early 1900s, the A Building is a major focal point of the campus plan as it developed during the Richardson-era expansion. The Lettered buildings group is united by the campus layout as well as the common use of the Renaissance Revival style, featuring brick masonry, large window openings with divided lights, and overhanging roofs covered with clay tile. The distinctive administrative function of the A Building is expressed in architectural features such as the monumental colonnade at the main entrance and the clock tower cupola. The Beaux Arts style structure was influenced by the Palladian villas and had a three-story brick center building with colonnaded portico flanked by two-story wings.
Survey number: HABS DC-349-AU
Building/structure dates: 1902-1904 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1962 Subsequent Work
National Register of Historic Places NRIS Number: 79003101