Wednesday, February 18, 2009

San Diego 1915: San Joaquin Valley Counties Building.....

The San Joaquin Valley Counties Building was located on the east side of the Esplanade, south of the Panama-California Exposition's central Plaza de Panama. The long florid facade of the building represented the civic style of architecture found in Mexico during the Churrigueresque period; with the central entrance consisting of a highly ornamented portal, containing a large arched window fronted by a broad balcony. The structure's lower story was smooth-walled, punctured by small Moorish-style windows; while the upper story was a riot of ornamentation. A pavilion was located at each end of the building, featuring large balconied windows, topped by decorative gables. An arcade at the building's north end connected to the arcade of the adjacent Foreign and Domestic Arts Building; while an open terrace extended along the east side, overlooking Spanish Canyon. The interior contained numerous exhibits from the counties of California's San Joaquin Valley, and was beautifully decorated with grains, cereals, and grasses arranged in decorative patterns around a variety of farming scenes.

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