Also known as: Oxo Wharf Tower Formerly: Oxo Cold Storage Warehouse Formerly: Post Office Power Station Renovated: 1928 Type: Multi-Purpose Facility Location: Barge House Street, London, United Kingdom
O riginally a power station, and later a cold storage warehouse, the people who work here would probably frown on being called a "mall." But the Oxo Tower Wharf complex is a place for shopping, eating, and panoramic views of the London skyline. It was reborn when the abandoned warehouse was turned into shops and studios for local artisans at a cost of £20,000,000.00. The site was originally used to store the Royal barge of King James I, which is why the address is "Bargehouse Street." Later it served various purposes before the current building was erected in the late 1800's. Then, it was a power station, providing electricity for the Royal Post. From 1928-1929 Albert W. Moore converted the building into a cold storage warehouse. Though he is widely credited for magnificently transforming the building with art deco sensibilities, by the 1970's it was abandoned and a decade later was threatened with demolition. The community came to the tower's rescue, and organized a campaign to save it. The reprieve came in 1984, and in 1996 the re-born complex was open to the public. Today the Oxo Tower has become one of the signature landmarks of England's capital.
The O-X-O letters, each ten feet tall, are actually windows with light shining through them from inside the building.
The city of London objected to the original illuminated sign for the building. It was shortened to simply "OXO" and was approved because it could be interpreted as a geometric design, not simply shameless promotion.
