Former Republic newspaper offices

(The office is across 2nd Street.)

One of seven national historic landmarks in Columbus.

Myron Goldsmith of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) designed the newspaper in 1971 of glass and steel and provided onlookers with a window into the business of communications. Originally, the paper’s printing presses could be viewed from the street, as they printed the daily paper (see photo). The open concept reflected the newspaper’s role as a central link in the information for the community.

The Republic was the seventh Columbus structure to be named an historic landmark, The U.S. Interior said, “The Republic is an exceptional work of modern architecture and one of the best examples of the work of Myron Goldsmith...."

The AIA (American Institute of Architects) gave the building an Honor award in 1975, one of five recognized in Columbus by the AIA.

Excerpt from The New York Times obituary for Goldsmith:

He was disarming in person, almost an antithesis of his architecture; perpetually rumpled, with a bird’s-nest tangle of hair and a shy, soft-spoken demeanor. “He managed with gentleness to exist and prosper in a field that is otherwise eaten up by tigerish egos,” said Franz Schulze, an art historian and Mies biographer.

Mr. Goldsmith was born in Chicago and graduated in 1939 from the Illinois Institute of Technology, where he studied under Mies van der Rohe.

The Republic is only the second SOM building to become a National Historic Landmark - the other is the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. The American Institute of Architects has recognized SOM twice with its highest honor, the Architecture Firm Award—in 1962 and again in 1996.

This building is currently in transition (the Republic offices were moved to the north side of Columbus), it has recently been purchased by Columbus hospital and will continue to be occupied.