A view of downtown Bloomington one block south of the Old Courthouse Square. With the camera pointed to the northeast, this photograph provides a view of the 100 block of N. Center St. on the left, and the 100 block of W. Front St. on the right.
This post is focused on the four buildings seen on the north side of the 100 block of W. Front St. From left to right, the historic name, completion date and street address of the four buildings are:
▪Unnamed Commercial Building, c. 1865, 115 W. Front St.
▪McMillan Grocery Building, date unknown, 113 W. Front St.
▪Rounds Block, 1857, 105-111 W. Front St.
▪McLean County Bank Building, 1854, 101 W. Front St (Side Address) 102 N. Main St. (Main Address). The McLean County Bank Building is featured in an earlier post in this series.
The unnamed commercial building on the corner, Rounds Block, and the McLean County Bank Building (whose main address is on N. Main St) are all Italianate designs. The three buildings are contributing architectural properties in the Bloomington Central Business District listed in 1985 on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The Bloomington Central Business District includes roughly twelve square blocks of the city and encompasses 140 buildings, 118 of which are contributing buildings to the district's historic character. The McMillan Grocery Building (second from corner) is non-contributing due to alterations which impacts the historic integrity of the structure.
The Rounds Block, which occupies most of the 100 block of W. Front St., is one of the oldest commercial buildings in Illinois designed by a professional architect. Rudolph Richter designed the building in Italianate style. The Rounds Block has been the site of commercial activity in Bloomington since its construction. Economic growth fueled by the arrival of the railroad in 1853 spurred new retail and craft businesses. The first floor of these buildings housed saloons, grocers, druggists, and restaurants. The upper floors were used for light craft production and as sleeping rooms for clerks and craft workers. The building was restored in 1995.
Bloomington is the seat of McLean County. It is adjacent to Normal, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area. Bloomington is 135 miles (217 km) southwest of Chicago, and 162 miles (261 km) northeast of St. Louis. The estimated population of Bloomington in 2019 was 77,330, with a metro population of 191,067.
Tags: Bloomington County Seat McLean County Central Illinois Illinois IL Street View Architecture Mixed Use Architectural Style Italianate Contributing Building Contributing Property Unnamed Commercial Building 115 W. Front St. Rounds Block 105-111 W. Front St. Architect Rudolph Richter McLean County Bank Building 101 W. Front St. Side Address 102 N. Main St. Main AddressNational Register of Historic Places NRHP Bloomington Central Business District Reference # 85000363 Canon EOS 5D Mark IV h
Since 1854 the McLean County Bank Building has adorned the northwest corner of N. Main St. (right) and W. Front St. (left) in downtown Bloomington. The old bank is a Milwaukee brick, Italianate style building. Windows of the second and third floors are framed in limestone and have arched headers.
Between 1854 and the 1880s, this structure served as the bank home of the McLean County Bank, and from 1854 to 1867 the top floor of the bank was used as the Masonic Hall of Bloomington.
From 1880s through most of the 1930s, this building was home to various banks, including the Third National Bank, Illinois Savings and Trust, Bloomington Savings and Loans, and the Lincoln Savings and Loan. The continued existence of the building was threatened in the late 1980s after plans to destroy the entire south block were announced. Fortunately, those plans fell through leading to the building being restored in 1994. The building is now used as professional office space.
The McLean County Bank Building is a contributing architectural property in the Bloomington Central Business District. The district was listed in 1985 on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), and includes roughly twelve square blocks of the city and encompasses 140 buildings, 118 of which are contributing buildings to the district's historic character.
This photograph also shows the west side of the 100 block of N. Main St. The six-story Livingston Building, highlighted earlier in this series, sits at the opposite end of the block on the south side of the courthouse square. Between the McLean County Bank and Livingston Building is a parking lot and alley. The open space north of the Livingston Building is the courthouse square, and the six-story, brick building seen on the north side of the square is the Corn Belt Bank Building, also previously highlighted in this series.
Bloomington is the seat of McLean County. It is adjacent to Normal, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area. Bloomington is 135 miles (217 km) southwest of Chicago, and 162 miles (261 km) northeast of St. Louis. The estimated population of Bloomington in 2019 was 77,330, with a metro population of 191,067.
Tags: Bloomington County Seat McLean County Central Illinois Illinois IL Architecture Uses Bank Financial Institution Commercial Office Space Architectural Style Italianate Milwaukee Brick 102 N. Main St. Livingston Building Side Address 112-120 N. Main St. Contributing Building Contributing Property National Register of Historic Places NRHP Bloomington Central Business District Reference # 85000363 Canon EOS 5D Mark IV
The Miller-Davis Law Buildings, known commonly as the Miller Davis Building, are located on the northeast corner of N. Main (left) and E. Front St. (right-one story frame building) in downtown Bloomington, These are the oldest surviving commercial buildings in Bloomington, and are excellent examples of the Federal Vernacular style commonly used in the Midwestern commercial architecture. The brick and frame structures share a common foundation and a common wall.
The two-story brick structure on the corner at 101-103 N. Main St. was built as an income property for local businessman, James T. Miller. Miller later was elected Illinois State Treasurer on the Republican ticket in 1856. The main floor was rented to a druggist and the upper floor contained, at different times, the law offices of Ashael Gridley, William Hanna and John M. Scott.
When the Eighth Illinois Judicial Circuit Court was in session the law offices became a convenient gathering place for the traveling circuit lawyers to borrow working space and discuss current issues. It was an impressive list of young men who later made their mark in the Civil War, or through state or national forums:
▪ Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) went on to become the 16th President of the United States from 1861 to 1865.
▪ David Davis (1815-1886) was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court from 1862 to 1877. After serving on the Supreme Court, Davis went on to represent Illinois in the United States Senate from Illinois in 1877-1883.
▪ William W. Orme (1832-1866) was a Brigadier General in the Civil War. Prior to his service in the Civil War, Orme was a partner in the law firm of Swett & Orme.
▪ Leonard Swett (1825-1889), William Orme's law partner, was a civil and criminal lawyer who advised and assisted Abraham Lincoln throughout the president's political career.
▪ Ward Hill Lamon (1828-1893) was an attorney, U.S. Marshall and the self-appointed bodyguard of Abraham Lincoln. Lamon was famously absent the night Lincoln was assassinated at Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865, having been sent by Lincoln to Richmond, Virginia.
The small one-story frame structure on the east (right) side of the brick building is a reconstruction of the offices built by David Davis for the firm of Davis and Colton. At the time it was considered unusual to build office space solely for a law practice. Davis's office remained at this site until his election to Circuit Judge in 1848. The offices were rented to various attorneys until 1859 when the building was sold to a shoemaker.
The Miller-Davis Building remained in continuous use until 1978. It is was given a museum quality restoration by the McLean County Historical Society in 1980-81. After a brief stint as a museum following restoration, the buildings have returned to office space for use as a law practice. The Miller Davis Law Building was listed by itself on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1979, and as a contributing property to the Bloomington Central Business District listed on the National Register in 1985.
To the left of the Miller Davis Building on N. Main St. is the three-story Harlan Building, which was constructed in 1871. On the opposite side of the frame on the right is the Hefferman Building, completed in 1870. The Hefferman Building is now home of Rosie's Pub. Both the Harlan Building and Hefferman buildings are contributing properties to the Bloomington Central Business District on the NRHP.
Bloomington is the seat of McLean County. It is adjacent to Normal, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area. Bloomington is 135 miles (217 km) southwest of Chicago, and 162 miles (261 km) northeast of St. Louis. The estimated population of Bloomington in 2019 was 77,330, with a metro population of 191,067.
Tags: Bloomington County Seat McLean County Central Illinois Illinois IL Street View Architecture Uses Law Office Lawyer Abraham Lincoln David Davis William W. Orme Leonard Swett Ward Hill Lamon Pharmacy Miller Davis Building Miller Davis Law Building Miller-Davis Law Buildings 101-103 N. Main St. 102-104 E. Front St. Harlan Building 105-107 N. Main St. Hefferman Building 106 E. Front St. Contributing Building Contributing Property National Register of Historic Places NRHP Reference #1 79003162 Bloomington Central Business District Reference # 85000363 Canon EOS 5D Mark IV
Central Station in downtown Bloomington was built in direct response to the Great Fire of 1900 that reduced 45 buildings and 4-1/2 blocks in the core of downtown Bloomington to little more than smoking rubble, including the 1868 McLean County Courthouse. The fire was so big that firefighters from Peoria and Springfield were called to help.
This two story, North European Renaissance style building was designed by Bloomington architect George Miller and completed in 1902 at a cost of $30,000. A 90-foot high bell tower and ornamental steeped gable have since been removed.
Bill Kemp, archivist for the McLean County Museum of History, described the fire station in a 2011 article published in The Pantagraph (daily newspaper). According to Kemp, "Facing Front Street were four bays to hold the horse-drawn engines, fire hose carts and chief’s wagon. Behind that was the horse “barn” with 14 stalls.
"The second floor included the fire chief’s office and the living quarters for the firemen, with the requisite brass pole from the upstairs lounge to the 'apparatus room' and its engine stalls below. Adjacent to the chief’s office was the Gamewell Fire Alarm Co. setup, which was connected via telegraphy to alarm boxes located throughout the city. In an age before the widespread use of telephones, this emergency system was the most efficient way for local residents to alert the fire department of an emergency.
"Upstairs, to the rear of the living quarters, was a room for the storage of feed, with enough space to hold 100 tons of baled hay, 1,000 bushels of oats and 500 bushels of corn. Chutes carried the oats and corn to the horse stalls below, while the hay was lowered through a trapdoor. Although the first motor-driven fire truck arrived in 1911, horses were used by the fire department to pull certain engines as late as 1916.
Central Station served as Bloomington's No. 1 fire station until 1973. After the building was vacant for a couple of years, it was remodeled into a restaurant operating under different names and ownership over the years.
Central Station is a contributing architectural property in the Bloomington Central Business District listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1985. The district includes roughly twelve square blocks of the city and encompasses 140 buildings, 118 of which are contributing buildings to the district's historic character.
Bloomington is the seat of McLean County. It is adjacent to Normal, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area. Bloomington is 135 miles (217 km) southwest of Chicago, and 162 miles (261 km) northeast of St. Louis. The estimated population of Bloomington in 2019 was 77,330, with a metro population of 191,067.
Tags: Bloomington County Seat McLean County Central Illinois Illinois IL Architecture Great Fire of 1900 Fire Station Fire House Architect George Miller Architectural Style North European Renaissance Central Station 220-228 E. Front St. a.k.a. Central Station Cafe Station 220 Epiphany Restaurant Adaptive Re-use Repurpose Landmark Contributing Building Contributing Property National Register of Historic Places NRHP Bloomington Central Business District McLean County Courthouse and Square Reference #1 85000363 Reference #2 73002160 Canon EOS 5D Mark IV
A view of the 200 block of E. Front St. in downtown Bloomington. On the far left is the former Central Station, an old firehouse featured previously in this series. The building is now the Epiphany Farms Restaurant.
While the firehouse is perhaps the most interesting building and example of reuse on this block, the corner building on the far right deserves attention for its past use as a Horse Hospital. During the last quarter of the 19th century, the business activity on East Front Street ranged from light manufacturing, as in a cigar factory and medicine factory, to several horse related concerns such as the Williams Horse Hospital.
W. T. Williams was a nationally respected veterinary surgeon who practiced in Bloomington. Dr. Williams was published widely in national and international professional journals. The building seen here was constructed in 1883, and could accommodate up to 23 horses at a time. Veterinarians would tend to local race horses and work horses. On the side wall, note the painted mural under an arched entryway. Although this entrance was sealed with brick long ago, the outline of the entrance used by Dr. Williams for his equine "patients" is still easily found.
Today the ground floor space is occupied by the 8 Bit Arcade Bar. As one might have guessed, the establishment is loaded with old arcade games.
The W. T. Williams Horse Hospital Building is contributing property in the Bloomington Central Business District listed in 1985 on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The district includes roughly twelve square blocks of the city and encompasses 140 buildings, 118 of which are contributing buildings to the district's historic character.
Bloomington is the seat of McLean County. It is adjacent to Normal, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area. Bloomington is 135 miles (217 km) southwest of Chicago, and 162 miles (261 km) northeast of St. Louis. The estimated population of Bloomington in 2019 was 77,330, with a metro population of 191,067.
Tags: Bloomington County Seat McLean County Central Illinois Illinois IL Street View Architecture Williams Horse Hospital W. T. Williams Veterinarian 236 E. Front St. Contributing Building Contributing Property National Register of Historic Places NRHP Bloomington Central Business District Reference # 85000363 Canon EOS 5D Mark IV