Hotel at King and Market initially had 76 rooms
Thomas Johnson in restored Ellis Hotel lobby
Thomas Johnson spent many long hours fixing up dilapidated old hotel
This is the only one of the beautiful curved exterior windows that survived intact the long exposure to the elements
Ornate plaster work by Thomas Johnson matched original pattern
The 100 double-hung windows had to be replaced
Thomas Johnson in the upper section
Cast iron stairs survived
Thomas Johnson acquired several of the interesting brick buildings across from his restored Ellis Hotel
Local architect Thomas Johnson doesn’t just draw up plans to save historic buildings. He jumps right in with his hands-on skills to recreate what was once an historic gem.
He pretty much single-handedly saved the old Ellis Hotel that had stood for decades without a roof at the end of King Street at South Market.
Mr. Johnson currently is joining in a campaign to save one of the buildings designed by famed Chattanooga architect R.H. Hunt. He said he was dismayed to learn that First Presbyterian Church may tear down the adjacent Medical Arts Building.
He said, just like in his incredible effort to save the Ellis Hotel, “I don’t feel that someone has a right to tear down a work of art. This is why I like to go to Europe. They have buildings that are 1,000 years old. We tear them down here after they are 50.”
Of the stout concrete buildings that Hunt designed, he said, “You can’t afford to build those anymore.” He noted that the Medical Arts Building is also unique in that it was designed by Hunt to serve physicians and dentists.
Mr. Johnson, who once was a partner in a successor to the Hunt firm, said all the Hunt creations were masterpieces that need to be preserved. He said, “Hunt was an amazing architect who drew up plans for many of Chattanooga’s iconic buildings.”
He added, “Hunt worked at a furious pace in the early 1900s through the 1920s to build many of our greatest buildings.” Others of his masterful designs – especially churches – were erected in cities throughout the South.
A native of Charlotte, N.C., Mr. Johnson said his father was with South Central Bell and the family made several moves – ending up in Birmingham. There a playground companion in the second grade asked him the inevitable Alabama question – who are you for – Alabama or Auburn?”
He chose Auburn and began studying architecture there. He also met his wife, Emma Marie Gordel, who is from Cullman, Ala. Their children are Hannah, Aaron and Sophie.
Also at Auburn, he became friends with Chattanooga architect Andy Smith, who asked him to join him in a design partnership.
Mr. Johnson noted that R.H. Hunt worked with architect W.H. Sears. He said Sears was later associated with Percy Shepherd, who led in the Shepherd Hills development. Earl Smith, father of Andy Smith, at one time joined in the firm of Shepherd and Smith.
Mr. Johnson said he gained a direct business tie back to R.H. Hunt when the firm of Smith (Andy) and Johnson (Thomas) was formed.
He noted that his first project in Chattanooga was a refurbishing of the historic James Building, which was designed by Hunt.
Mr. Johnson was well aware that the triangular Ellis Hotel was a Hunt creation when he got involved in its salvation. He said, “(Mayor) Gene Roberts wanted to tear it down and had a contract drawn up with E.L. Pate for $67,000. Then Cornerstones (preservation group) got involved and put a roof on it. Still, time was running out when I agreed to buy it for $265,000.”
He put some of his own home equity in it and managed to borrow $100,000 from a bank as well, then went to work with the havoc that the elements had wreaked. A main column in the lobby had sunk well into the floor, and he had to jack this up for starters.
Much of the intricate terra cotta work at the top of the columns was missing, so he set to work to build molds in a workshop in an old building he bought across South Market Street. The exact reproduction of the egg and dart crown molding was a long and laborious process, but it brought back one important element of the building as Hunt had designed it.
In his woodshop, the “self taught” craftsman created many matching boards to fill in the many missing wooden pieces – for another step back to the original.
The old hotel building has 100 windows – lined up for the tiny original hotel rooms, and he replaced every one of the double hung windows that are 7’x4’4″.
Only one of the original arched windows remained in place – that at the very tip of the building sheltered from the sweeping winds that ruined the other arched windows. Mr. Johnson was able to duplicate those interesting ornate windows.
The ornate drug store type mosaic flooring on the ground floor was replicated as well.
For the upstairs floors, Mr. Johnson chose marble – even though he had 21,000 square feet to cover. For his huge order, he found a supplier in Istanbul, Turkey. He said, “The supplier sent over a representative. Then they sent two shipping containers by water before loading the tiles on a flatbed truck. Then they were lifted up into the upper portion of the hotel by crane.”
Several cast iron staircases are among the original, unspoiled pieces still on display at the old Ellis Hotel.
The original two-story lobby was put into use as part of the upscale St. John’s Restaurant, which only recently moved to the former Mountain City Club.
The upper two floors were converted to 14 apartments, one of which was occupied by the Johnsons until the Moxy Hotel across King Street blocked Mrs. Johnson’s cherished view of the sunrise.
For the door locks Mr. Johnson was able to find enough old-fashioned units that had been taken out of the Jefferson County Courthouse in Alabama during a remodeling.
He had closed the purchase in October 1998 and had the lower section ready for use by September of 2000. Then he went to work on the upstairs that was largely missing.
The building, that was erected in 1915, features 32,000 square feet of space.
Mr. Johnson notes that because it is a concrete building and because of the ample windows, “I haven’t had to turn the heat on all winter in the old hotel lobby.”
Mr. Johnson reckons that the old Ellis Hotel that the city wanted to tear down and others were loath to tackle is today worth between $8 millon and $10 million.
The architect also wound up owning many of the interesting brick buildings across Market Street, starting with the Porkers Building in 1989. He said the upper stories contain small rooms used as boarding houses for those passing through on the railroad. Each room had a coal fireplace. Once, he said, a card fluttered out an old fireplace that had the railroad schedule and also said: Rooms .50; Beds .25, Meals .25.
The oldest of those quaint buildings is 1908. He said these buildings, as well as the Ellis Hotel, featured rooms with 11-12-foot ceilings in order to keep them cooler and allow the heat to rise to the ceiling.
Mr. Johnson fixed up an old building across from the Choo Choo that was initially occupied by the Hot Chocolatier and the Chattanooga Whiskey Company.
He set up an historic district along the section of South Market near his property goving over to Cowart Street. Buildings in that district are eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places.
Mr. Johnson renovated the old Park Place School into condos, including an over-sized unit at the school’s former auditorium, and he renovated the Louise Terrace Apartments on Walnut Street for Provident.
He was hired by Bruz Clark of the Lyndhurst Foundation for an historic preservation project at the former Chancellor McConnell house on E. Fifth Street. Lyndhurst maintains its offices there.
Mr. Johnson was involved in the redesign of the former American Lava building at the corner of Cherokee Boulevard and Manufacturers Road, and he set up an office for this business on the third floor.
He was active in design work in early phases of the Tennessee Riverpark.
Along the way, he has been a prime, but under the radar, agent in preserving much of the city’s rich heritage.
This article was originally published by a www.chattanoogan.com . Read the Original article here. .