The Wanamaker Building

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The Wanamaker Building is a 12-story mixed-use building that includes three basement levels and several penthouse levels. Macy’s Department Store occupies the first through third levels and remaining levels house office space. The building is located in the Center City District of Philadelphia.

Wanamaker’s department store was the first department store in Philadelphia, and one of the first department stores in the United States. The building was originally constructed from 1904 until completion in 1911, when it was dedicated by President William Howard Taft. The palatial emporium featured the former St. Louis World’s Fair pipe organ, at the time one of the world’s largest organs. Another item from the St. Louis Fair in the Grand Court is the large bronze eagle, which quickly became the symbol of the store.

The Wanamaker Building was included on the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places in 1973. The U. S. Department of Interior entered the Wanamaker Building on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. The building was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1978. There have been a number of modifications since construction, and the building was renovated in 1990.