Marble columns and a big bronze door showed this bank meant business

It’s fun to see the different ways that certain buildings have been used over the years.

Like the First National Bank on the northeast corner of 10th Street and Baltimore Avenue.

When the bank opened in 1906, the downtown we know today was just starting to take shape.

Designed by by the architectural firm Wilder & Wight (later Wight & Wight) the building’s neoclassical lines gave 10th Street an immediate dose of power and permanence. In fact, other financial institutions soon took the hint and set up shop along what came to be known as Bankers Row.

Clearly, the stars of the show were the six marble columns on the front. Each weighed 48 tons. According to reports, crowds gathered to watch a special steam engine wrangle them into place.

The massive bronze door was no slouch either.

Inside the First National Bank. marble continued to play a prominent role. Particularly in the president’s office, where it mingled with mahogany and a grand fireplace.

In the spacious main lobby, an ornate clock dominated the back wall and huge columns surrounded the tellers’ cages.

Banking activities continued in the building for decades—under a variety of different names due to a series of mergers and acquisitions. The last iteration, a Bank of America branch, closed in 1996.

But eight years later, the big front door at 14 W. 10th Street swung open again. This time ushering patrons in to something completely different—the Central Branch of the Kansas City Public Library.

Having trouble seeing the video? Watch it here.

Looking for more Kansas City history?

KC’s financial clout in the early 20th Century rose up from the stockyards that ruled the West Bottoms

Just a few blocks from Bankers Row, the Garment District was a vital part of the city’s manufacturing core

Rewind back to the days of the KC Zoo’s Great Ape House