saint paul city hall and ramsey county courthouse

Source: Saint Paul City Hall and Ramsey County Courthouse

The Saint Paul City Hall and Ramsey County Courthouse, located at 15 Kellogg Boulevard West in Saint Paul, Ramsey County, in the U.S state of Minnesota is a twenty-story Art Deco skyscraper completed in 1932. This was built during the Great Depression, the era of high unemployment and falling prices, the four million dollar budget for the building was underspent, and the quality of materials and craftsmanship exceeded initial expectations. The exterior consists of smooth Indiana limestone in the Art Deco style known as "American Perpendicular", which was designed by Thomas Ellerbe & Company of Saint Paul and Holabird & Root of Chicago and inspired by Finnish architect, Eliel Saarinen. The vertical rows of windows are linked by plain, flat, black spandrels. Above the Fourth Street entrance, and flanking the Kellogg Boulevard entrance, are relief sculptures carved by Lee Lawrie.

The interior design in the "Zigzag Moderne" style drew its inspiration from the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes, which promoted soft ornamentation and sensuous curves. In Memorial Hall, the white marble floor contrasts with three-story black marble piers leading to a gold-leaf ceiling. At the end of the hall is the 60-ton, 38 feet (11.6 m) white onyx Indian God of Peace by Carl Milles (later renamed Vision of Peace). Other features includes woodwork fashioned out of twenty-three different species of wood, and also uses five different types of imported marble. Murals were painted by John W. Norton while the six bronze elevator doors were made by Albert Stewart.