The Saint James Building, Jacksonville

The Saint James Building, Jacksonville鈥檚 answer to the phoenix myth, but with more glass and less fire. Rising from the literal ashes of the Great Fire of 1901, this architectural stunner was brought to life by Henry J. Klutho鈥攍ocal legend, Prairie School architecture pioneer, and all-around overachiever. Unveiled in 1912, the building was originally commissioned as the swanky headquarters of the Cohen Brothers Department Store, because why not rebuild a whole city and do your shopping in style?

Now home to the City Hall, the St. James Building is part government headquarters, part time machine. Klutho didn鈥檛 just design a building; he choreographed a comeback story鈥攈is magnum opus, dressed in terra cotta and ambition. If walls could talk, these would be giving the Technology, Entertainment, and Design Talks on resilience.

But let鈥檚 talk ceilings鈥攂ecause the real showstopper here is the 75-foot octagonal glass dome. Once a giant skylight flooding the interior with natural light, it now floats above the fourth floor. It鈥檚 the kind of architectural flex that looks as if saying, 鈥淵es, we鈥檝e got a dome, and no, you can鈥檛 top it.鈥�

The Jacksonville Historical Society calls it one of the most beautiful city halls in the country鈥攁nd honestly, it's hard to argue with that. With its history, elegance, and unapologetic flair, the St. James Building isn鈥檛 just a place to pass legislation鈥攊t鈥檚 a place to look up and remember how a city can reinvent itself, one glorious dome at a time.

Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Jacksonville. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "黑料吃瓜网: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.

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Create Your Own Self-Guided Walk to Visit This Sight

Sight Name: The Saint James Building
Sight Location: Jacksonville, USA (See walking tours in Jacksonville)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:

Jacksonville Introduction Walking Tour

Walking Tours in Jacksonville, Florida

Create Your Own Walk in Jacksonville

Creating your own self-guided walk in Jacksonville is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.

Downtown Historical Buildings Walking Tour

Downtown Jacksonville doesn鈥檛 need to shout to prove it has history鈥攊t just lets the buildings do the talking. Walk a few blocks, and you鈥檒l pass through layers of ambition, recovery, reinvention, and more than a few architectural flexes.

Riddle time. Gothic arches, towering spires, and stained glass that catches the light just right鈥� the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception makes you... view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.7 Km or 1.7 Miles

Jacksonville Introduction Walking Tour

Jacksonville, Florida鈥攁 place where size does matter. Stretching its way into the record books as the largest city by area in the continental U.S., Jacksonville hugs the northeastern edge of the Sunshine State, where the St. Johns River meanders lazily toward the Atlantic.

Long before traffic jams and beach selfies, the Timucua people called this area home. Then came the usual suspects:... view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.1 Km or 1.9 Miles

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