Stone Bank Block — Built 1877

Stone Bank Block — Built 1877. . , Western Colorado's first banking house, the Hinsdale County Bank, opened in Lake City in June of 1876. The bank was a branch of the First National Bank of Colorado Springs and boasted prominent banker H.A. McIntire as president and H.J. Alexander as cashier. The Hinsdale County Bank was so successful that in 1877 it was chartered as the First National Bank of Lake City. , Up until 1877 the bank operated out of a modest frame building located in what is today the Lake City Park, but in the spring of 1877 plans were unveiled for what was to be the finest and costliest stone building in the city. Stone for the structure was taken from a small quarry immediately north of Lake City. , The Stone Bank Block was constructed by the First National Bank in conjunction with John S. Hough. Cost of the cut-stone structure, with furnishings, was $22,000 when it was completed in August, 1877. , Following is a description of the building, as reported by the SILVER WORLD newspaper: "Stepping in the front door one's attention is arrested by their massive appearance and ornate beauty, as well as the French plate glass panels which adorn them. The front office, which is 22' x 27', is finished in grained walnut and has two large windows on each the north and east sides... a pair of Diebold Safe and Lock Co.'s fire proof vault doors lead into the vault 6’ x 9' and nine feet high. The vault is of solid stone masonry with a stone floor, and contains the bank's safe weighing 5,000 pounds costing $1,500 put in its present location." , H.A. McIntire suddenly resigned as President of the First National in March, 1878. Several months later it was confirmed that McIntire had embezzled over $40,000 from the bank. A lengthy trial ensued, during which the First National Bank of Lake City, once the premier bank of the San Juans, quietly liquidated its remaining assets and went out of business. McIntire was convicted of embezzlement and sentenced to a lengthy prison term; his term was commuted, however, when he was pardoned by U.S. President Rutherford B. Hayes. , The Miners and Merchants Bank of Lake City, owned by Thatcher Brothers of Pueblo, Colorado, opened its doors in Lake City in April, 1877. Thatchers purchased the Stone Bank Block from the defunct First National Bank in 1881 for $10,000 and moved into the elegant quarters. The Miners and Merchants Bank remained at this location for the next 33 years, weathering periods of great prosperity and dark economic gloom. , The bank survived the turbulent 1890's, the silver crash of 1893, and the great boom caused by rich gold strikes at the fabulous Golden Fleece Mine. At its peak, before the declining years after 1900, the Miners and Merchants Bank of Lake City was one of Thatcher Brothers' most successful banks. , By 1914, however, the times of great boom were clearly ended in Hinsdale County. A majority of the county's mines were closed and business in Lake City was increasingly stagnant. Mahlon D. Thatcher made the decision that the Miners and Merchants Bank must close its doors once and for all. , The Stone Bank Block went through a variety of ownerships and uses after the Thatcher bank closed. In 1919 a portion of the building was used for the Lake City Post Office, including a confectionery counter where ice cream was served to afternoon customers. Silent movies flickered several times a week in the parlor of the bank building, while the corner room was occupied as an office of the Lake City Power Co. , In the 1930's the Stone Bank Block became known as the Lake City Hotel. The hotel provided cozy rooms in the upstairs portion of the building, the same rooms which had been rented out to physicians, attorneys and dentists in the building's earlier history. Downstairs, where the elegant bank counter had formerly stood, restaurant tables were arranged and meals served throughout the day and night. , Lake City native Joel Swank operated a liquor store in the building in conjunction with a cocktail lounge and dance floor; his mother, Beth Ray, managed the restaurant and hotel portion of the business. , Newton S. James bought the building in 1946 and christened it the Elkhorn Hotel. The Elkhorn, as it was to be known for several generations, was treated to a coat of white paint on the exterior. Neon signs were later erected on the outside which announced in glowing shades of green and red that lodging, food and drink might be found inside. Under James' successor, Wesley West, the hotel's night life became legendary. Gambling, liquor and wild times flowed non-stop through the night. , Jim and Therese Ryan acquired the Elkhorn Hotel from a Gunnison bank in 1956 and reopened the business in 1957. Under the Ryans' ownership, and until its sale to John Parker in 1974, the Elkhorn was one of the most popular and successful restaurant and hotel combinations in southwestern Colorado. , A new chapter in the Stone Bank Block's history arrived in May, 1983, when a group of local businessmen opened the First National Bank of Lake City. It was the first banking institution to open its doors in Hinsdale County in 69 years, the first since the old Miners and Merchants Bank closed its doors in 1914.