The Bradford-Martin Building is a five-story Italianate commercial structure featuring a cast-iron storefront and ornate window hoods with decorative bracketed cornices across its brick facade. The building's rhythmic fenestration, with tall arched windows on the upper floors and elaborate classical detailing, exemplifies the elegant commercial architecture that once defined Washington Avenue's wholesale district.
The Bradford-Martin Building was constructed in 1875 during a period of rapid commercial expansion along Washington Avenue, which was emerging as St. Louis's primary wholesale and manufacturing corridor. The building was designed by architects Francis D. Lee and Thomas B. Annan, both prominent figures in shaping the city's post-Civil War architectural landscape. Lee, who had arrived in St. Louis in the 1850s, was known for his versatile commercial designs, while Annan contributed to numerous downtown structures during this era of rebuilding and growth. The building's name reflects its association with early owners or principal tenants, likely merchants or wholesalers who operated along this bustling stretch of Washington Avenue. Throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the Washington Avenue district served as the hub of St. Louis's garment industry and dry goods trade, and the Bradford-Martin Building would have housed businesses catering to this thriving commercial ecosystem. Like many of its neighbors, the building likely saw a succession of tenants as the nature of downtown commerce evolved over the decades. By the mid-twentieth century, Washington Avenue experienced significant decline as retail and manufacturing shifted away from the urban core. The Bradford-Martin Building, along with much of the surrounding district, fell into underuse. However, the revitalization efforts that transformed Washington Avenue beginning in the 1990s brought renewed attention to these historic commercial structures. Today, the Bradford-Martin Building remains standing as part of the Washington Avenue Historic District, a testament to the area's nineteenth-century commercial heritage.
