Hartford Times Building, Hartford, Connecticut:
First constructed in 1920, this historic Beaux-Arts gem at 10 Prospect Street was the headquarters of the now defunct Hartford Times. The newspaper was at the height of its influence as Connecticut’s top publication in 1917. That year, the Times commissioned architect Donn Barber, who had designed the nearby Travelers Tower, Connecticut State Library and Supreme Court Building. While planning the design, Barber became aware of the imminent demolition of the Madison Square Presbyterian Church (pictured last) in New York City. He was able to salvage the six green granite pillars, pilasters, cornices and most of the portico of the church, which he incorporated into the Hartford Times Building. The circular-headed windows from the 24th Street façade of the church became the doors of the Times Building.
The Hartford Times Building was the backdrop for speeches by four presidents, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, Lyndon Johnson and a crowd of 100,000 for the final speech of John F. Kennedy’s election campaign in 1960. The Hartford Times occupied the facility until the newspaper’s demise in 1976. Then, the building came under government ownership and was used as an annex to the adjacent Municipal Building. The building had been in disuse until 2017, when a $116.7 million renovation and expansion provided a new home for a downtown campus for the University of Connecticut (designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects).
