Insurance Exchange Building, Historic office building in Long Beach, California.
The Insurance Exchange Building is an eight-story Beaux-Arts office building on Broadway in downtown Long Beach, California. It was built by Lorne and Way Middough, who moved their men's and boys' clothing store into the first floor. Its 28,000 square feet (2,601 m2) of floor space made it one of the largest office structures in downtown Long Beach when it opened in 1925.
The building was constructed in 1925 and initially housed the Middough Brothers clothing store and the Long Beach Municipal Court on its floors. Over the decades it transformed into an insurance industry center, reflecting the city's changing commercial needs.
The building displays classical architectural language with ornate stone details that shaped Long Beach's downtown appearance during its commercial peak. Visitors can observe the craftsmanship typical of early twentieth-century office design.
The Insurance Exchange Building stands on Broadway in downtown Long Beach, within The Promenade redevelopment area upgraded in 2007. It is a working office building, so visitors view the Beaux-Arts facade and eight-story massing from the sidewalk rather than going inside. Nearby downtown streets and transit stops make it easy to reach on foot.
The structure underwent multiple major repurposings throughout its lifetime, beginning as retail space, then serving as a courthouse, and later becoming an insurance hub. These shifts reveal how the city's economic priorities shifted across generations.
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