Elgin Tower Building

Elgin Tower Building ; Home National Bank Building, Elgin Tower
	The Elgin Tower in January 2011
Basic data
Place:	Elgin , Illinois , United States
Construction time :	1928-1929
Status :	Built
Architectural style :	Art deco
Architect :	Bank Building & Equipment Corporation of America
Use / legal
Usage :	offices
Technical specifications
Height :	56.69 m
Height to the roof:	56.69 m
Rank (height) :	1
Floors :	15th
Elevators :	2
address
Address:	100 East Chicago Street
Post Code:	60120
City:	Elgin

The Elgin Tower Building , originally the Home Banks Building , is a historically significant office building in downtown Elgin , Illinois . The tower is 56 meters (186 ft ) high and has 15 stories. It was completed in 1929 after a year of construction and was originally intended to serve as the headquarters for the Home National Bank and Home National Savings and Trust. After it was used successfully shortly after completion, the bank perished as a result of the global economic crisis . During the Second World War the building was again heavily used as the demand for the city's goods increased. However, this success was only temporary and demand fell in the 1960s, also due to the closure of the Elgin National Watch Company. The tower was ultimately bought by William R. Stickling, who made great efforts to restore the building. After his death, the building became the property of a charity named after him, the William R. Stickling Charitable Foundation, who continue to maintain the building. This maintenance should be part of the hoped-for modernization of Downtown Elgin. The building is one of only two Art Deco- style buildings and has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2002 . On May 4, 2014, an elevator with wooden fittings fell victim to a fire.

history

Elgin was founded on the Fox River in 1835 . In 1850, the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad connected Elgin to Chicago , allowing the small town to make daily deliveries to Chicago. In 1865 the Elgin National Watch Company opened and became a major employer. Due to the company's success, others settled there. In the wake of the economic boom, many banks in the city emerged in the late 19th century. In 1865 the Elgin First National Bank opened, followed 7 years later by the Home National Bank. With the Aurora, Elgin and Fox River Electric Company (1895) and the Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad (1903) further measures followed, which gave rise to a kind of economic network. There were several stores in Elgin by 1920, including hotels and a Woolworth's store. Since the Home National Bank was a major investor at the time, the bank had to expand more often. Home National Savings and Trust was responsible for Elgin National Salary Administration. In 1927, the heads of the company ordered the construction of a new headquarters, as the three-story building on Fountain Square would no longer suffice.

Construction of the Home Banks Building began in March 1928 and was managed by the St. Louis Building and Equipment Company. It was completed in May 1929 at a cost of around US $ 800,000. The main tenants were Home National Bank and Home National Savings and Trust. However, they rented many of the new offices to local companies, and the tower was about 70% full when it opened. Upon completion, it was the city's first skyscraper in what has been dubbed the beginning of a new era. The bank boasted a state of the art vault, which was both fire-proof and burglar-proof.

Like many other banks, the Home National Bank collapsed during the Great Depression. In 1932 the bank declared itself bankrupt. Only 35% of the building remained occupied. As a result, the First National Bank of Chicago took over management of the building in August 1932. The new owner, who renamed the building the Elgin Tower Building, succeeded in increasing the utilization of the tower to around 60% by banning other buildings . Later a Walgreens opened on the first floor. With the end of the Second World War in 1945 there was a great demand for goods from the manufacturing industry, which gave Elgin another economic boom. In the same year the investor Otto Pelikan bought the building. Between the late 1940s and the 1950s, the building was almost completely occupied.

The occupancy rate of the Elgin Tower Building fell sharply again in the 1960s as the demand for goods fell. In 1957, Walgreens left the building and the space was subsequently used by a successful restaurant. In 1965 the Elgin National Watch Company was closed which is interpreted as a sign of the decline of the city. The US Highway 20 also created a route that passed the city. In 1971, with the opening of the Woodfield Mall in nearby Schaumburg, the demand for shopping opportunities fell. In 1980 the workforce at the Elgin Tower Building was only 40%. After Pelikan's death in 1967, the building changed hands several times. In 1975 the facade was renewed by the Williams family in the hope of economically revitalizing Downtown Elgin. In 1978 the tower was bought by William Stickling and continued to be maintained. In 1996, a million dollars were invested in the renovations. In 1999 lights were installed on the facade to signal the importance of the building. After his death in 2000, the building became the property of the William R. Stickling Charitable Foundation, who are currently responsible for the building. In 1999 the Elgin Tower was expanded to accommodate the Downtown Neighborhood Association , which is trying to modernize the city center, rent-free . On May 22, 2002, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places as a monument .

architecture

The building is located between Douglas and North Grove Avenues, a neighborhood historically known as Fountain Square and now often referred to as the Downtown Area of Elgin. The Chicago Street Bridge was the only bridge over the Fox River at the time. The 15-story high-rise, designed by WG Knoebel, is one of only two Art Deco-style buildings in Elgin. A two-story "base" was added, which now mainly houses retail stores. The main entrance consists of two doors made of three panes of glass and is bordered by columns of the Corinthian order . There is an eagle statue on each of the pillars. In the limestone in the lower part there are many classic figures as well as elements from the Art Deco style. Above the second floor there are also seven eagles incorporated as a relief, these in turn are located below parrots arranged in a zigzag. It still has arched windows. There is a clock on the east side; Home National Bank originally advertised the building as "The Bank with the Clock". The clock is in a copper box and is decorated with copper and bronze ornaments.