Free previewStop 6 of San Antonio River Walk Tour: The Alamo to Main Plaza
Twelve Wedding Rings and a Tower
You're standing at the foot of the Tower Life Building, the tall brick tower locals simply call Tower Life. Look all the way up to that green tile roof. Then let your eyes drop a little to the stonework below it. Those carved faces are grotesques and gargoyles, keeping watch over downtown since 1929. And notice the shape. The tower has eight sides, and it's the tallest eight-sided building in the United States.
When it opened, it wasn't called Tower Life. It was the Smith-Young Tower, built by two brothers, Jim and Albert Smith, with a developer named Judge J.W. Young. Their plan was big: a whole cluster of skyscrapers here at the river's bend. The first piece of this tower to open was a store.
That's the opening. The rest plays at stop 6 of San Antonio River Walk Tour: The Alamo to Main Plaza (3 min in all). Unlock the tour to hear it all, or try stop 1 free first.
