The Grant Building

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View of the Grant Building (orange brick building at right) behind the larger One Oxford Centre
View of the Grant Building (orange brick building at right) behind the larger One Oxford Centre

Grant Building is one of the major distinctive and recognizable features of the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania skyline. The tower is named for Pittsburgh Grant Street power strip or corridor where all the major regional corporations or government offices are located.

The Grant Building was completed in 1930 and it has 37 floors. It rises 485 feet or 148 meters above Downtown Pittsburgh. Its address is Grant Street. The structure is unique art-deco built with Belgian granite, limestone, and brick. It was famous for a radio antenna that rose roughly 100-150 feet from the roof of the tower which had an aviation beacon that spelled out P-I-T-T-S-B-U-R-G-H in Morse code. The Beacon could be seen as far away as 150 miles on clear nights. A smaller version of the beacon, still flashing out the name of the city, remains to this day.

The tower on the roof also served as the broadcast signal for the world's first radio station KDKA Pittsburgh.

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