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St. Mary's Center (St. Mary's Academy)

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St. Mary's Academy
1931–1932, D. A. Bohlen and Son. 502 W. Elm Ave.

Vertical brick ribbons, limestone fluting, and dramatic setbacks seem to heighten this very large, four-and-a-half-story building on a raised foundation, Art Deco girl's school with a central tower and end pavilions. The interior is arranged around a central lobby axis and a marble-and-wrought-metal staircase. Since the mid-1980s, when the boarding school was closed due to lack of enrollment, the religious order has gradually converted its dormitories, lounges, classrooms, reception rooms, administration offices, and chapels into an education and conference center.

Writing Credits

Author: 
Kathryn Bishop Eckert

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