People's National Bank Building (Tyler, Texas) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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People's National Bank Building
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 Location in Texas
Location in the United States
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| Location | 102 N. College Avenue, Tyler, Texas |
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| Area | less than an acre |
| Built | 1932 |
| Built by | Campbell & White; Universal Contracting of Houston (poured foundation) |
| Architect | Alfred C. Finn |
| Architectural style | Art Deco |
| NRHP reference No. | 02000896 |
| Added to NRHP | August 22, 2002 |
The People's National Bank Building is a tall building located in downtown Tyler, Texas. It stands in Courthouse Square at 102 N. College Street. This building is special because it's listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
It was designed in the Art Deco style, which was very popular in the 1920s and 1930s. A famous Texas architect named Alfred C. Finn created its design. He was known for building many tall, steel-framed buildings. The People's National Bank Building was finished in 1932. Since 2014, it has been known as the People's Petroleum Building.
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History of the People's National Bank Building
The idea for the People's National Bank Building came from a local lawyer and judge named Samuel A. Lindsey. He was also a real estate investor and led the bank. He decided to build it in 1932, right in the middle of the Great Depression. This was a time when many people faced financial hardship.
The building is located in the center of Tyler, on the southwest corner of Courthouse Square. Before this building, a two-story store called Goldstein and Brown stood there. That store was damaged by a fire around 1930. The store owners sold the land to People's National Bank in May 1931.
The bank then hired Alfred C. Finn, an architect from Houston, to design a new skyscraper. By October, he had already shown his plans for the building. A local company, Campbell & White, was chosen to build it. They hired Universal Contracting of Houston to pour the foundation in April 1932. Campbell & White was the main builder for the project.
The People's National Bank Building officially opened on November 5, 1932. It quickly became very popular. In fact, it was completely rented out before the start of 1933. Many important businesses in Tyler had their offices there. These included McMurrey Refining Company and a law firm called Pollard & Lawrence. Broughton Wilkinson, who helped start a big oil boom in the area, also had an office there.
Because so many businesses wanted space, the building's owners decided to make it bigger. They added more floors to a part of the building that faced West Erwin Street, making it ten stories tall. The building remained a top office spot in Tyler through the 1950s.
Later, the building started to lose tenants. In 1969, some expensive updates were made to try and attract new businesses. In the early 1980s, a bank called Nation's Bank bought People's National Bank. Nation's Bank then moved into its own new, taller building nearby. This new office space, along with new buildings being built outside the city center, meant many offices in downtown Tyler became empty.
In 1997, a company called Tyler Towne Centre bought the building. They worked to keep its original look. By 2001, the banking area itself didn't have a tenant, but some shops and offices were rented out. However, a report from 2000 said that most of the building was empty.
A new group of owners, including Garnett and Tim Brookshire and Andy Bergfeld, started a big renovation project in the early 2010s. They updated important systems like air conditioning, electricity, and plumbing. They also gave the building a new name: People's Petroleum Building. They renovated the tenth and eleventh floors to create modern office spaces. These were used to show to potential new tenants. By September 2014, the ninth and tenth floors were rented, and the eleventh floor was ready for new businesses.
Architectural Style and Features
The People's National Bank Building shows off the Art Deco style. At the street level, on the College Street and Erwin sides, the outside walls are covered with smooth, black granite. This granite has special vertical grooves called flutings. The original windows were set in metal frames, but these were later changed to plate glass in aluminum frames.
Inside, the first floor still looks much like it did originally. This includes the main lobby and the banking rooms. These areas are decorated with beautiful marble and limestone. The building's design is only perfectly balanced on its College Street side. Here, the walls are mostly made of brick, with shiny black granite adding a nice contrast.
Gallery
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People's National Bank Building in 2012
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People's National Bank Building in 2016, view from the west
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People's National Bank Building in 2016, view from N. College Avenue
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See also
In Spanish: People's National Bank Building (Tyler) para niños
