Stewart Lee Udall Department of the Interior Building, Washington, DC
Location: 1849 C St NW, Washington, DC 20240
The building which today houses the Interior Department was intended from the earliest planning to serve as offices for that Department. Harold Ickes, Secretary of the Interior from 1933 to 1946, had requested and secured approval for the erection of the building. Growth of the Interior Department was rapid during the period between the two World Wars, and the need for space was significant. Well-known architect, Waddy B. Wood, designed the building which was project number 4 of the WPA. Construction began in August of 1935 and was completed in December of 1936. The Interior Department Building was Wood's largest, and last, commission before his retirement in 1940.
The design for this building was influenced in large measure by Secretary of Interior Harold Ickes. The WPA was initially placed under Interior's jurisdiction, therefore Ickes worked closely with Wood and exerted a great deal of influence. Ickes personally selected Wood. He was insistent that the building not mimic the classical revival style of so many Federal buildings in D.C., and suggested that all offices be outside rooms. He especially enjoyed central air conditioning and wanted it to be included; the Interior Building was one of the earliest Federal buildings to be air conditioned. It was also the first Federal building to have a central vacuum cleaning system, and one of the first to incorporate a parking garage in the building. Ickes appointed various committees to oversee construction thereby limiting the role of the Treasury Department as supervising architect.
Among the most significant aspects were the spacious central corridors, open courtyards, movable steel office partitions, acoustically treated ceilings, an entire floor reserved for mechanical equipment, and fireproof design. Of special concern to Ickes was providing spaces intended to add an air of luxury and identity. These included an Art Gallery, Auditorium, Broadcast Studio, Employee's Lounge, Gymnasium, Library, Museum, and Indian Arts and Crafts Shop.
So identified was Ickes with the Interior Department Building that contemporary newspaper accounts refer to the building as "Ickes new home." In fact, the official portrait of Harold Ickes depicts him in his old Interior Building office studying the plans for the new Interior Building.