Our Rich History: Skyscraper sweepstakes in Ohio River region, starting in early 1920s

By Paul A. Tenkotte, PhD

Special to NKyTribune

The early 1900s witnessed an intense competition among U.S. cities to build taller and taller skyscrapers. The Ingalls Building at Fourth and Walnut Streets in Cincinnati, Ohio, helped to pave the way, becoming the world’s “first reinforced-concrete skyscraper” when completed in 1903. A 16-story office structure, the Ingalls was beautifully renovated into a hotel in 2021, now home to Courtyard by Marriott. I remember the old office tower well, as my father worked for a CPA firm there in the 1960s, and I visited often.

Across the Ohio River from Cincinnati, Covington claimed the “first reinforced-concrete skyscraper” in Kentucky, the 7-story 1910 Coppin’s Department Store at Seventh and Madison Avenues. Opened in March 1910, the department s