Colcord built the Colcord Building, now known as the Colcord Hotel, which was the first skyscraper in Oklahoma City. It was also the first steel-reinforced concrete building in Oklahoma, because Colcord had seen the devastation to lesser buildings in San Francisco following the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and resulting fires. Originally designed with two wings, only the east wing and connecting elevator/stair segment were constructed. Architect William A. Wells was a protégé of Louis Sullivan, a founder of the Chicago School style of architecture. Sullivan designed the molds for the decorative terra cotta ornamentation on the first, second, and twelfth floors of the Colcord. The building survived Oklahoma City's Urban Renewal efforts and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Developer Paul Coury, with the help of investors including Beck Design and Manhattan Construction, has transformed the office building into a boutique hotel adjacent to the state's tallest building, the new 51 story, 274 metres/900 feet Devon Tower. The Colcord Building is now owned by Devon Energy. Colcord also built the Commerce Exchange Building and the Biltmore Hotel.
Architecture
When the Colcord Building was completed in 1910, at 12 stories, it was the first skyscraper in Oklahoma City. Constructed by Charles Francis Colcord, he chose William A. Wells as the architect. Wells was a protégé of Louis Sullivan, a founder of the Chicago School style of architecture. Sullivan was also the designer of the molds for the decorative terra cotta, which adorns the first, second, and twelfth floors of the Colcord Building. The building was constructed of reinforced concrete after Colcord witnessed terrible devastation associated with the San Francisco earthquake and resulting fires in 1906. He wanted to avoid the same catastrophic loss of his building. Every luxury of the time was incorporated in the construction. Marble adorned the columns and walls of the main lobby, the original nickel and bronze letterbox and elevator doors shone, and an ornamental plaster ceiling crowned the space. This landmark was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
