The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1910-08-27
Destruction of National Met
ropolitan Office TO Be
gin Shortly.
BUILD A THEATER
ON THE PROPERTY
White Marble Structure Will Take
Place of Banking InSti-
tuition.

Pids are to be opened next Thursday
Tor the destruction Of the old National
Metropolitan Bank, one Of the Oldest
bank buildings Of Washington me
bids viii be opened b VI H de Sibourr
architect for the new structure which
is 10 take its place.
The old home of financial institutions
which have occupied It for the past
half century. within a few weeks viii
be razed and in its place viii rise q
building in keeping with the other re-
cent imposing structures Of Fifteenth
street in the neighborhOod OF the Treas
ury-
The plans for the new eisht-st0Ty
building, which IS to occupy not only
the site Of the old bank, but that Of the
Riggs House as well, have been changed
since their recent announcement The
entrance to the theater had been plan
ned for Q street, leaving the entire FL
tenth street frontage Tor oInce puf-
poses. but the architect IS now WORKING
on a plan 10 make the theater entrance
on the Fifteenth street side.
Build At Once
As soon as the old bank has been
RACED bids on the revised plans VIII be
invited and the erection Of the new
building commenced. As the lease OF
the Rigs House does not expire until
Nay L the architect viii proceed with
the erection Of that portion Of the build
ing which can occupy the lot vacated
by he bank building
This viii be an office building OF
eight stories, and containing 1SS Of
fees. II will also have a Turkish
bath in the basement, and the heating
ana mechanical plants for the whole
building The material for the front
Is 10 be white marble and terra Gotta
which, with the architectural style,
viii carry out the scheme Of the new
Metropolitan Bank building adJOln-
1Dg- The theater Is to occupy part OF
the section on the Riggs House site
The old bank building which Is
about to disappear was built about
nifty years ago as q tWO-SJOTy ONCE
building, and was occupied curing the
war by jay Cooke < Co, through
which company the war loans Of the
Government were made Then the
First National Bank. with Henry d,
Cooke as president, occupied the sec
end floor until the failure Of both
concerns IN the panic OF 1873
Bought By Tome.
In 1875 the property was sold 70
jacob Tome, Of Maryland, who pUr-
chased II for the Citizens National
Bank, an institution brought 70 the
city from Hagerstown- In view OF
the price recently paid by the Riggs
Realty Company for the property,
S225, 900, the price which it brought
al that time is interesting Mr. Tome
paid 1000, and added a third story
70 the old building In the past
thirty-foUr years, therefore. the value
OF this property has increased more
than threefOld-
The Citizens National Bank cOntin-
we'd IN business until its merger with
the West End National Bank and the
National Metropolitan Bank in 1903
when the name was changed TO Met
TOpOlitan-CiCiZenS National Bank
This name was shortly changed &c
National metropolitan Bank
The presidents Of the different in
EtitutiOnS occupying the building have
been W R ADpelman- = J. CresWell
" no was Postmaster General in the
Grant Administration - Geary John
sOE, r c Stevens T. S Parker, and
now George W White
The old building has been UnOCCu-
pied since the completion Of the new
home Of the National metropolitan
Bank adjoining