U.S. Custom HouseSuspected

Dated: Dated 1848–81
Declared purpose: Federal offices and customs warehouse
Today: Survives, federal building
Build time: About 33 years (1848–81)
Region: United States
Architect of record: Alexander Thompson Wood, architect: about when credited (1848, born ). Build time on record: about 33 years (1848–81).All architects of record →
On the list as: Suspected

Why it's on the list

A massive granite block on soft ground below river level; how much of its lower storey sits at or below grade is an open question.

Hidden history

Found, Not Built

A massive granite customs house with Egyptian Revival columns, in a city built below river level. Construction stretched from 1848 to 1881.

Why researchers flag it
A massive granite block on soft ground below river level; how much of its lower storey sits at or below grade is an open question.
Heavy granite on soft ground
A granite block this heavy stands on the soft ground of a city that sits partly below river level. Researchers ask how far it has settled, and how much of the lower storey now sits at or below grade.
Egypt in Louisiana
Egyptian Revival columns appear in customs houses, prisons and cemeteries across the US.
Thirty-three years
The record blames redesigns and the Civil War for the long build.