Puneet Varma (Editor)

Castle Apartments

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Built
  
1922

NRHP Reference #
  
86000219

Added to NRHP
  
February 13, 1986

Demolished
  
2010

NMSRCP #
  
1213

Castle Apartments

Location
  
1410 Central Avenue SW, Albuquerque, New Mexico

Castle Apartments was a historic apartment building in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States, which was destroyed by fire in 2009. It was located on the southeast corner of 15th Street and Central Avenue, roughly halfway between Downtown and Old Town.

Built in 1922, it was a two-story, U-shaped building with a central courtyard and 20 residential units ranging in size from 600 to 750 square feet. The name came from the Huning Castle mansion, which originally stood on the other side of 15th Street. The Castle Apartments were added to the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties in 1985 and the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.

Fire and aftermath

The Castle Apartments fire began around 8 pm on August 4, 2009, and quickly spread throughout the entire building via the shared attic space. Thirteen fire trucks and around 50 firefighters responded to the scene, fighting the blaze for nearly a full day before it was extinguished. No one was injured in the fire, but the historic apartments were gutted.

The building's owners initially expressed optimism that it could be restored, but were unable to find a financially viable means of doing so. Eventually, the burned-out structure was demolished in July 2010.

Televised footage of the fire was used by AMC's Albuquerque-based television series Breaking Bad to represent the crash of airliner Wayfarer 515 (season 3, episode 1, "No Más").

References

Castle Apartments Wikipedia