Sinclair Building

The Sinclair Building is a finely articulated Art Deco skyscraper that opened in November 1930. It continued a popular trend of Art Deco building design in Fort Worth that began in 1927 with the Worth Theater. The building design and detailing reflected the most current trends in both Europe and the major cities of the United States. Built as a result of fortunes made from a west Texas oil and gas industry boom, it housed the Sinclair Oil Company, one of the largest independent oil companies in the region. Its form, detailing and materials reflect the emerging prominence of the petroleum industry in the economy of Fort Worth. The Sinclair Building is nominated to the National Register at a local level of significance under Criterion c in the area of Architecture as an exceptional example of the Art Deco (Zigzag Moderne) style designed by a prominent local architect and executed by skilled craftsmen. Fort Worth had been a burgeoning city for over a decade when the Sinclair Building was completed in 1930. Vast oil discoveries in west Texas counties (Wichita County 1911, Erath, Stephens and Eastland Counties, 1917) had changed the economy of Fort Worth. Previously a cattle and agribusiness center supported by a large railroad network, the city became a regional center for the oil industry. As a railroad hub, it was ideal for refining and distributing oil, concentrating oil well drilling supplies and oil company administration. Numerous independent oil companies were created and older corporate giants expanded. A great infusion of capital spurred development, and the city experienced a building boom that lasted until the Great Depression hit in 1930. The Sinclair Building was commissioned in 1929 by Fort Worth oilman Richard Otto Dulaney, designed by Fort Worth architect Wiley Gulick Clarkson, and constructed by contractor Harry B. Friedman. Dulaney and Friedman were co-owners and dubbed it The Dulaney Building until the Sinclair Oil Company pre-leased most of it during construction. The owners made a concerted effort to design the most up-to-date skyscraper in the city. To that end, they and the architect visited Chicago, Detroit and New York City before finalizing the design (Fort Worth Record-Telegram, July 14, 1929). The Sinclair Building was a "modern" skyscraper in 1930. It embodied the most popular architectural trends and influences of its time, and contained the most up-to-date mechanical technology (Fort Worth Record-Telegram, Nov. 16, 1930). The popularity of its form and detailing can be traced to the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Artes Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes (Paris Exhibition) in France. Whereas, the overall form of the buildings exhibited remained familiar, the detailing had been pared down and became part of an overall sculptural effect through the use of geometric shapes and patterns. The popularity of the Art Deco skyscraper image was spurred by the ideas that were showcased, especially the method of construction using reinforced concrete and application of metal as a decorative material. Plattened and angular metal designs produced a decorative vocabulary. The Paris Exhibition popularized abstracted images and patterns of geometric shapes, foliage, animal and human forms, water motifs (such as running fountains) and "exotic" cultures' motifs. The popularity of the Art Deco style was due to the relative ease of construction utilizing reinforced concrete structure and an image of newness and innovation. As such, the Art Deco movement took hold as a dominant style for new corporate architecture in the country. The detail on the Sinclair Building reflected the new style and was comprised of what had rapidly become classic zigzag patterns interspersed with Mayan influenced motifs from southern Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras. The vocabulary and treatment of the Zigzag Moderne style on the Sinclair Building was derived from the Paris Exposition and included a fountain motif, foliage, flowers, sun bursts, zigzags, octagons, and ribbed "pilasters" capped with an encased trifoil diamond "capital. The Mayan influenced motifs include Mayan stepped-frets which are reminiscent of foliage and/or water. Additionally, the ground floor is articulated by equal bays of corbeled arches. The building form is traditional zigzag Moderne, the early phase of Art Deco. The set backs and jagged silhouette, combine with balance and a spare, clean, unbroken mass to accentuate the verticality of the skyscraper. The attention to detail, the intensely worked surface detailing, and sophisticated building design make the Sinclair Building one of Fort Worth's finest examples of the Art Deco (Zigzag Moderne) style. The Sinclair Building went through a period of decline that resulted in insensitive changes such as covering original wall and ceiling materials, removing the Main Street entrance in 1959, removing the stepped entry ceiling, marble floors, wainscotting, and Monel grills. Restoration work was begun in 1988 by the Reaut Corporation. Major repairs were made to the limestone veneer and other exterior materials as well as interior materials. For example, drop ceilings were removed, original plaster exposed and reworked, the Monel entrance screen was recreated in steel, the original Main Street entrance was rebuilt, and other extensive and detailed work was accomplished. The Reaut Corporation applied for the tax credit program in 1991 and is awaiting National Park Service approval of the completed work. (25 Nov 1991)