Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1884-04-03
TINE CITIZENS BANK.
The Finest eslitias Ia the City Of wichita. Costing
Forty-Se Thousand Dollars.


The finest, costliest and most imposing
and complete business house yet erected in
this city has just been taken possession oil
by the Citizens Bank, on the corner OF Main
street and Douglas avenue. What has for
years been an unsightly pile of rat.traps has
given way to an edifice in every way worthy
of the ambition Of any town, east or west
When We say the finest, most complete and
imposing, we mean just what we say. The
building is 80 feet on Douglas avenue, lis
feet on Main street, built of brick, stone,
iron and glass, and cost $4,000. The bank
building or room, proper, is 2ox7l feet. built
on basement Of dressed stone, which base
ment is four feet below the level of the side
walk and five feet above 1t. The caps, stills,
belts and tables are all of heavy cut stone
work. The plate glass on the east side are
each 9xl0 feet square and on the south front
7x12 feet each. The entr ance to the bank
ing floor is on the corner which is reached
by massive cut-stone steps and solid balus-
trades OF graceful design, capped with
mouldings Of the like curves and equal mas
siveness. The basement rooms are reached
by three iron stairways leading from the
pavement. Around the entire east and
south fronts is an open area about which
runs heavy iron railing. The pavement is
OF immense tagging stone and all exoavated
beneath and cut up into apartments for
heating apparatus, fuel, store-rooms, etc.
The entire building is thoroughly piped aud
supplied with water, steam and gas. The
main entrance is supported by fiuted col.
umns Of stone and is all fashioned out of
that material and of striking and pleasant
proportions. The cornice and capital finish
o. the front is galvanized iron surmounted
by iron cresting Of neat design. The base
ment rooms are nine feet in the clear, with
cemented walls and floors. The banking
rooms is as handsome and substantial as any
room Of the kind to be found in any city,
east or west. The vault, which is very large,
is supplied with burglar-proof safe OF the
best design, weighing 5000 pounds, and is
supplied with time-locks. The counter,
which is a magnificent piece Of artistic de-
sign. work and finish, and all the inside
castings and finish is OF solid cherry, the pi-
lasters, mouldings aud things OF which
make up an exceedingly harmonious and
pleasing effect. The counter, which runs
entirely around the room, is supplied with
four wickets, each Of solid brass, and very
elaborate. The spaces between the wickets
are filled or paneled with various colored
Venetian glass, no two alike, and which
scintilate in the gas light. 1t would take a
column TO accurately describe the counter
and its ornaments, which was designed by
W. p. Stem, Of this city, and worked out by
j. ii. Morgan who has put in his life at just
such work. The cost of the counter CON-
plete was upwards OF S1,400. The building
is heated by furnace situated beneath the
pavement, supplied with water from the
city watcr-works and by gas from the city
course OF construction. To give an idea OF
the time and labor necessary to get all the
material together, We obtained from Mr..
Stem, the contractor, the folio wing items /:
The pressed brick came from Kansas City.
The stone work and trimmings, from Win
Acat. anu vas bVhC dhoSi CohtAoSt "
tie and Bailey. J. r. Stone had the plaster
ing contract. C. r.. Whey the contract for
painting and hardwood finish, and Jacob
Bissantz did the galvanized iron, cornice
and tin work. The silver and bronze and
hardware was furnished by G. G. Matthews,
the former coming from Cleveland, Ohio.
The silyer-plated sash, bars and brass wick
cts came from firm in st. Louis. The plate
glass was furnished by DePauw's works
New Albany, Indiana. The iron work was
furnished by John Seaton's works at Atch-
ison, and the steam heating, plumbing and
gas fitting by Dougherty h Everett, Kansas
City. The Venetian glass came from Chica-
go, the bent glass from Newark, New Jer-
sey, and the art tiles from J. G.. Low, Chel-
sea, Massachusetts. Thus were the materi-
ais which compose this fine structure
brought together by Mr.. Stem who has been
with the town in his capacity as a builder
since the days when sod, slabs and shakes
composed the edifices which adorned the
banks of the Little river in the vicinity of
Lake Side.