Bluitt Sanitarium
2036 Commerce St., Dallas, TXThe Bluitt Building, located at the east end of downtown Dallas at 2036 Commerce Street, is a 3-story commercial building that is similar to remaining buildings from this era in downtown Dallas, and representative of a commercial building type common at the beginning of the 20h century. Constructed in 1904 with later modifications made to the primary facade, the Bluitt Building was part of the commercial development that replaced residential structures and neighborhoods on the eastern edge of downtown Dallas; this occurred in conjunction with the city's commercial expansion to the east. In conjunction with this growth, this eastern edge of downtown Dallas has experienced several distinct business concentrations from that of 'automobile row' in the 1910s and 1920s, to office supply establishments to commercial restaurant and refrigeration equipment in the 1950s and 1960s to neglect and demolition of many of its structures in the 1970s and 80s to a current resurgence of these smaller buildings. The Bluitt Buildings' tenants have been representative of these successive generations of businesses that located at the fringe of a rapidly changing downtown.
Dr. Benjamin R. Bluitt, an African American physician and surgeon, purchased this lot and constructed this building to serve as his medical offices and sanitarium. Dr. Bluitt was the first African American surgeon in Texas, and with this building, was to provide the first hospital facility for African Americans in Dallas. Dr. Bluitt occupied the building from 1904 to 1914 (with a brief absence in 1910). The building is nominated to the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion A in the area of Commerce at the local level of significance for its association with the early commercial history of downtown Dallas. It is also nominated to the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion B for its association with Dr. Bluitt, a prominent African American physician in Texas, in the area of Health/Medicine and Ethnic Heritage at the state level of significance.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 2006.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.