Raynolds Addition in Albuquerque in Bernalillo County, New Mexico — The American Mountains (Southwest)
The First National Bank Building
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 11, 2023
1. The First National Bank Building Marker
Designed and built in 1922 by leading southwest architects Trost and Trost. This prime banking institution was Albuquerque's first skyscraper.
A Registered Cultural Property
State of New Mexico
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Notable Buildings. In addition, it is included in the National Register of Historic Places series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1922.
Location. 35° 5.067′ N, 106° 39.002′ W. Marker is in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in Bernalillo County. It is in Raynolds Addition. Marker is at the intersection of Central Avenue Northwest and 3rd Street Northwest, on the right when traveling west on Central Avenue Northwest. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 219 Central Ave NW, Albuquerque NM 87102, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Railroad (Central) Avenue (within shouting distance of this marker); Hope Building (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Central Bank Building (about 500 feet away); Railroad Avenue and Front Street (about 600 feet away); Gold Avenue (about 700 feet away); Hotel Alvarado
this page online
Regarding The First National Bank Building. Excerpt from the National Register nomination:
Joshua Raynolds and his brother Jefferson began their careers as bankers in Pueblo and Trinidad, Colorado; in 1876, moving south, they opened the Central Bank in Las Vegas, New Mexico, with another brother, Frederick. In 1878, two years before the Santa Fe Railroad arrived in Albuquerque, the Raynolds brothers established the Central Bank of Albuquerque in a still-existing one-story adobe building on the southwest comer of Old Town Plaza. When the railroad line was laid one-and-a-half miles to the east of the original settlement of Albuquerque, now known as Old Town, a New Town grew up around the tracks, and the Raynolds brothers followed the general move to the east, establishlng the Central Bank in a two-story ornate Victorian brick building (now demolished) at the northwest corner of Second and Gold.
By 1884, the brothers were able to buy out the First National Bank of Albuquerque and assume itsname, and by 1902 they had extended the family business into El Paso. Joshua Raynolds, who became president of the bank in 1902, also assumed the presidency of the locally based Occidental Life Insurance Company … Joshua Raynolds died in 1916, and his place as bank president was taken by his son, John Madison Raynolds, under whose authority the First National Bank Building was constructed.Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 11, 20232. National Register of Historic Places Marker
Trost and Trost, who had designed the Occidental Life Insurance Building (and an earlier home for Occidental Life, now demolished) for Raynolds, were chosen as the building's architects at a time when they were also designing the very different Pueblo Revival facade of the downtown Franciscan Hotel (now demolished). Sumner Sollltt Company is listed as the contractor in the 1922 building permit, in which construction costs are estimated at $434,000.
Also see . . .
1. First National Bank Building (PDF). National Register nomination for the building, which was listed in 1979. (Prepared by Susan V. Dewitt, Historic Landmarks Survey of Albuquerque; via National Archives) (Submitted on November 10, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
2. First National Bank Building (Albuquerque). Wikipedia entry on the nine-story building, Albuquerque's first skyscraper and tallest building until 1954.
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 11, 2023
3. The First National Bank Building Marker
Photographed By J. Makali Bruton, October 23, 2023
4. The First National Bank Building and Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on November 22, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 10, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 54 times since then and 14 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on November 10, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. 4. submitted on November 22, 2023, by J. Makali Bruton of Accra, Ghana.
