The Baltimore Sun Building (also known as the Sun Building or American Bank Building) was designed in 1885-87 by nationally recognized architect Alfred B. Mullett for A.S. Abell, publisher of the Baltimore Sun, as the paper's Washington news bureau. The building was constructed by John H. Hewlett. A contemporary account stated that "'The Sun Building marks, it is believed, a new era in building in Washington." This new era was characterized by rapidly developing technologies. At the time of its construction, the Sun Building was viewed as one of Washington's most distinguished new business structures. The building stands as a fine example of the Victorian Gothic style of architecture.

Today, the Sun Building retains the exuberant character and strong visual presence that distinguished it in 1887. Its exterior has been carefully restored to the original design. Only the demolished steeple could not be rebuilt. The upper interior spaces retain their original finishes and detailing. The interior commercial spaces and lobby were returned to the original conformation, while accommodating modern conveniences and complying with building and safety codes.

DC Inventory: December 21, 1983

National Register: March 27, 1985

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Built between 1836 and 1869, the Treasury Department building is the work of five major American architects—Robert Mills, Thomas U. Walter, Ammi B. Young, Isaiah Rogers, and Alfred B. Mullett. Conceived and built in the Greek Revival style that captured the spirit of the young republic, this building and the Patent Office, undertaken at the same time, are the most outstanding examples of Greek Revival civil architecture in the country. Not only were they the largest non-military buildings undertaken by the federal government in their own time, but they also influenced countless examples of civil architecture across the nation.

From 1800, the Treasury Department was housed in the first of George Hadfield’s three brick Executive Offices, built between 1798 and 1799 on the site of the present north wing. The Treasury Office caught fire in 1801, 1814, and 1833, and it was not reconstructed after the third conflagration. Robert Mills, who had been in the capital since 1830, was asked to assess the fire, and by 1836, his plans for a new Treasury building were accepted by Andrew Jackson. Undoubtedly, a major reason for Mills’s selection was his interest in fireproof construction, demonstrated by his Fireproof Building (1822-27) in Charleston, South Carolina. Mills had also studied with both Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Latrobe.

Mills’s design for the Treasury called for an E-shaped building opening west toward the White House, with a long classical facade on 15th Street, but only the east front and center wing were built under his supervision, from 1836 to 1842. The unusual vaulted structural system of the building and its monumental scale aroused suspicion in Congress, as well as some sharp professional jealousies among rival architects. In 1838, a bill was introduced in Congress to authorize the demolition of the half-completed structure. The architect presenting the case for demolition was Thomas U. Walter, Philadelphia’s leading Greek Revival practitioner. Walter was appointed Architect of the Capitol in 1851, and he was authorized to prepare plans for extending the Treasury in 1855. His concept, which was carried through as others executed the work, established the ultimate rectangular layout, double courtyards, and portico facades.

The south wing was built from 1855 to 1861 under the supervision of Ammi B. Young, appointed Supervising Architect of the Treasury in 1852. While Mills had been forced to use Aquia Creek sandstone, the extension was carried out in granite. The columns were monoliths, whereas Mills’ had been built up in drums. Young was abruptly dismissed by Secretary Salmon P. Chase in 1862 and replaced by Isaiah Rogers, who remained in the job until 1865, supervising completion of the west wing (1855-64), addition of an attic floor on all the wings (1863-65), and preliminary planning for the north wing. Upon his resignation, Rogers was succeeded by his former subordinate Alfred B. Mullett, who completed the north wing between 1867 and 1869. This wing contains the elaborately decorated marble Banking Room, which was the setting for Ulysses Grant’s first inaugural ball in 1869.

The Mills interiors are minimally decorated, their architectural character resulting from the masonry barrel-vaulted corridors, flanked by groin-vaulted offices. The elegantly curved, cantilevered marble staircases are a signature of his work. In contrast, the interiors of the three later wings rely much more on interior decoration for their architectural character. Their structural system, influenced by the emergent cast iron technology, is one of shallow brick vaults supported on cast iron beams, producing rectilinear volumes and a much less sculptural appearance. In these wings, Young, Rogers, and Mullett made extensive and imaginative use cast iron of and cast plaster decoration, including cast iron pilasters and friezes in the main corridors. Mullett’s Cash Room is the most lavish space in the building, displaying seven varieties of marble in the paneled walls, and richly sculptural bronze railings for the balcony.

By the late 1890s, the need for additional office space led to the insertion of a large truss-roofed drafting room in the south courtyard, for use by the Supervising Architect of the Treasury. The poor quality of the building’s original Aquia Creek sandstone led to the rebuilding of Mills’ colonnade. Architects York and Sawyer added an attic story to the building between 1909 and 1910 and made other alterations through 1923. The north entrance statue of Alexander Hamilton, by James Earle Fraser on a base by Henry Bacon, was also installed in 1923.

DC Inventory: November 8, 1964 (Joint Committee on Landmarks)

National Register: November 11, 1971

National Historic Landmark: November 11, 1971

Within Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic Site, Financial Historic District, and Lafayette Square Historic District

This site is included in the Women's Suffrage in Washington DC tour for its role as a staging area for allegorical performances at the end of the 1913 Women's Suffrage Parade.

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The State, War and Navy Building was built just west of the White House, between 1871 and 1888, to designs by architect Alfred B. Mullett. Like the Greek Revival style Treasury Department Building to the east, on the other side of the White House, the Second Empire/French Renaissance style State, War, and Navy Building is a monumental, isolated rectangle with a transecting wing and two interior courts.

The building is six stories high, with purple-grey Virginia granite walls and slate mansard roofs. Its colossal size and almost unbelievable variety and richness of detail represent the quintessence of vigorous, superscaled late 19th-century architecture.

This building was constructed to create a new permanent home for the overcrowded State, War, and Navy departments. Four future presidents had offices in the building: Theodore Roosevelt as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, William Howard Taft as Secretary of State, Franklin D. Roosevelt as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and Lyndon B. Johnson as Vice President. 13 Secretaries of the Navy, 21 Secretaries of War, and 25 Secretaries of State had offices in the building. It is now principally occupied by the ever-expanding White House staff, and known as the Eisenhower Executive Office Building or Old Executive Office Building.

DC Inventory: November 8, 1964 (Joint Committee on Landmarks)

National Register: June 4, 1969

National Historic Landmark: November 11, 1971

Within Lafayette Square Historic District

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Designed in 1889 by architect Alfred B. Mullett (1834-1890), the Mullett Rowhouses can be found in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood. This row of Queen Anne style residences were built of red brick with sandstone trim. Each building features large projecting bays, round-arch windows, dormers, and a mansard roof. The buildings were designed to have the appearance of being one large mansion, rather than three separate dwellings. Although the residences exhibit the architectural features characteristic of rowhouses of the period, they also reflect Mullett’s talent. The speculative luxury townhouses are taller and wider than neighboring contemporary rowhomes and feature bolder design elements than many of their neighbors. DC Inventory: September 19, 1990National Register: September 30, 1994

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