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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis


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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

WILLIAM McCHESNEY MARTIN, JR., BUILDING

BOARD OF GOVERNORS
OF THE
FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

Dedication Program
The William McChesney Martin, Jr. Building
Tuesday, November 19, 1974
3:00 p.m. —
North Podium Level

Master of Ceremonies

—

The Honorable Robert C. Holland,
Member, Board of Governors

Dedicatory Remarks —

The Honorable Arthur F. Burns,
Chairman, Board of Governors

Comments —

The Honorable William McChesney Martin, Jr.,
Former Chairman, Board of Governors


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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

William McChesney Martin, Jr., whose
father was the first Chairman and Federal
Reserve Agent of the Federal Reserve Bank
of St. Louis, was born in St. Louis in
1906. He began his own illustrious career
in the Examinations Department of the St.
Louis Reserve Bank in 1928, following his
graduation from Yale University. He subsequently joined a St. Louis brokerage firm,
and later sat as a member of the New York
Stock Exchange. In 1938, Mr. Martin was
elected President of the Exchange, serving
in that capacity until his entry into the
Army in 1941. Following the war, he was
associated with the Export-Import Bank, the
Treasury Department, and the World Bank
prior to his appointment, in 1951, as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Since his retirement
in 1970, Mr. Martin has served as an adviser,
director, and trustee of numerous corporations, foundations, and educational institutions.


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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

The William McChesney Martin, Jr.
Building stands on property originally
acquired as part of the land site for
the first Federal Reserve Board Building. Since 1937, when the present
building was completed, a variety of
space plans were developed to accommodate new administrative, regulatory,
and supervisory responsibilities which
had been assigned to the Federal Reserve.
The first of such plans resulted in
boring a tunnel under "G" Street during
the construction program for the Board's
original building. The tunnel anticipated an eventual need to provide underground access to a future structure on
the Board's property across "C" Street.
As the Board's building became increasingly crowded, particularly during
the post-war years of economic expansion,
space planning efforts were renewed. In
1962, the architectural firm of Harbeson,
Hough, Livingston and Larson was commissioned to design an annex building.
In conjunction with the Fine Arts
Commission and the National Capital
Planning Commission's master plan for
enhancement of the Federal City, the
Board approved a construction program
which also incorporated the needs of the
Department of the Interior to expand its
park area to the north and east of the
new building.


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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

Construction was originally scheduled to begin in 1969, but the Board's
desire to minimize competition for scarce
goods and services during that inflationary period led to a deferral of the
construction program. Ground-breaking
took place in April, 1971.
A specific design objective of the
building was to provide maximum flexibility of interior space through such
features as movable partitions and modular furniture. In addition, optimum
energy utilization was a major consideration in the design and selection of the
building's heating, air-conditioning, and
lighting systems. To achieve this, the
building has a trend-setting heat recovery
system which helps to reduce its total
energy requirements.
There are four levels of office space
above ground, and a fifth level for cafeteria and dining facilities. Below ground
level, space is provided for computer operations, printing and graphics, parking, and
other services.
The new structure has been named the
William McChesney Martin, Jr. Building, in
honor of Mr. Martin, who served as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System from 1951 to 1970.


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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

This article is protected by copyright and has been removed.
Article Title:

Fed to Build $33-Million Annex

Journal Title:

Washington Evening Star

Date:

Tuesday, March 23, 1971


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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis