Gulf Building

Prominent real estate developer, publisher, statesman, and banker Jesse H. Jones opened the Gulf Building in 1929 with Gulf Oil, National Bank of Commerce, and Sakowitz Brothers as primary tenants. Alfred C. Finn designed the 430-foot-high Art Deco edifice with a six-story base topped by a tall tower that diminishes in size as it rises. The 37-floor, steel-frame structure remained Houston’s tallest skyscraper for 34 years. In 1986, the building, then owned by a successor bank, underwent a $50 million restoration. It was renamed the JPMorgan Chase Building in 2000 and continues as a monument to the city’s growth, modernity, and financial prosperity.

Houston, Texas · United States