North Town State Bank
2331-2343 W Devon Ave. Chicago, IL 60659
The North Town State Bank building was built in 1926 by the most prolific architect of buildings on Devon, the firm of Oldefest & Williams. The firm completed at least eight buildings on the street in addition to the North Town State Bank, including the Campbell-Devon Building and the North Town Recreation Building (Site 21), all of which are intricate Baroque-Revival style structures. Oldefest & Williams buildings were characteristically ornate with terra cotta ornamentation, decorative medallions, and decorative urns or finials along the top of the parapet wall. This building is particularly ornate with decorate swags, urns and medallions, and has a large amount of the ground floor facade still intact, rare for the building stock along Devon.
According to an article in the Chicago Tribune from October of 1926, the North Town State Bank building was to have “several stores in addition to commodious banking quarters.” * Now the building is still a mixed-use commercial and residential building, but the bank left only 5 years after opening, in 1931, as a result of an embezzlement scandal. The original bank facade had a grand two-story entrance archway, which has now been altered to match the two-part commercial style building composition. * “Plan $400,000 Bank at Devon and Claremont.” Chicago Tribune, October 10, 1926. Source: Jennifer Harrman |
Resources:
Photo credit: Jennifer Harrman
|