Schuyler Apartments
National Register Listing
Street Address:
S. Church St., Spartanburg, SC (Spartanburg County)
NRHP Nomination
Record Number:
S10817742068
Description and Narrative:
The Schuyler Apartments, constructed in 1950, is architecturally significant as a prominent and unique example of post-World War II high rise International Style architecture in Spartanburg. The Schuyler Apartments were designed and developed by Spartanburg architect David William Cecil. Cecil’s family-owned firms of Cecil Architects and Engineers and Cecil Construction designed and built several housing developments in the area between 1948 and 1950. Cecil was one of the first people to be registered in both architecture and engineering in the state of South Carolina. The Schuyler Apartments are not only the largest, but also the most architecturally distinctive of David W. Cecil’s designs for apartment buildings in Spartanburg. The design of the Schuyler Apartments exemplifies the International Style, which was formulated in Europe prior to World War II and reached its zenith in the boom of post-war construction in the United States and elsewhere. With its plainer appearance, reinforced concrete construction with a vertical emphasis, steel and glass ribbon windows, and externally-expressed structural frame, it occupies a prominent place in the cityscape, located three blocks south of the central business district. The building is sited on its original expansive parking lot devoid of landscaping. This site concept is consistent with the mid-century attitude that the visual connection between the street and the mass of auto parking was important. Listed in the National Register May 12, 2014.
Period of Significance:
1950
Level of Significance:
Local
Area of Significance:
Architecture
National Register Determination:
listed
Date of Certification:
May 12 2014
