Here’s a little more info on the NC School Book Depository building, for those that might be interested:

“The North Carolina School Book Depository was built in 1925 for the sole purpose of housing textbooks for the state and county school systems in North Carolina. In the old days, textbooks would be transported to Raleigh via train; the textbooks would be offloaded from the trains into the warehouse through the rear downstairs entrance on the south side of the building…then loaded onto delivery trucks … for delivery to schools across the state….The building is heavy timber construction with brick walls 13″ thick. The front wall of the building was constructed to align with the street, and is not parallel to the rest of the building. Hargett St [has been]raised about 30″ during the life of this building. The ‘chicken wire’ window panes are original to 1925…The original heart pine structure and maple floors are still in place…” (Excerpted from “Capital Area Preservation Tour: Architecture of Industry.” May 1999)

This office rennovation is an excellent example of adaptive reuse of an historic industrial building. And I think it’s swell the design firm decided to keep the wall-painted sign. You don’t see too many of those around downtown Raleigh anymore!

Now, if only someone would take on the old Melrose Knitting Mill building, the subject of an earlier post on this blog. (What’s The Future Of This Building?)

Do you have copies of “North Carolina and the American Experience”?

Thank you

My grandfather was Arthur E. Lewis. He was manager of the depository when I was a youngster (1950/60s). I often joined him when he would go to the warehouse to work. I was facinated by all the different school books and always found something to read. He lived within walking distance on nearby Kinsey St.

The NC Book Repository is now the Global Headquarters of WISER Systems. A leading provider of precision positioning and asset tracking systems.