Ruston

The Ruston State Bank was founded in 1890. It was the city's first Bank. Although the downtown branch moved to a new building sometime after 1976, the 1910 Beaux Arts Branch still functions as the banks Trust and Financial Services Center.

The actual building itself is a two-story, masonry structure decorated in the Beaux Arts style. It is located near the center of a party-wall block and faces a busy thoroughfare in downtown Ruston. Significant alterations include the loss of most of the interior and a 1955 expansion which took in a former store connecting to the bank on the north side. However the Beaux Arts facade remains intact from the original building and construction.

Even though Ruston was founded in 1883, most of the buildings in its commercial district date from the early twentieth century. With the exception of a few late Italianate style business houses, the city's French style Federal Building, a late gothic Revival style church and two structures in the Modern style, most of these buildings are block-like one and two story party-wall structures of plain utilitarian design. Many are distinguished by nothing more than slightly corbeled cornices. Against this background, the monumental Ruston State Bank stands as a visual landmark. With its set of paired monumental pilasters, its coffered barrel vault, and its highly articulated pediment and tympanum, the bank is clearly the most elaborately styled structure in the downtown area.

Ruston State Bank was first organized by:

J.J. Booles
E. L. Kidd
E. S. Kidd
W. A. J. Lewis
J. M. Smith
O.M. Wright

The original officers of the bank were:

President.......Dr. J.J. Booles
V. President...L.M. Kidd
Cashier.........A. H. Mayfield
Directors.......J. J. Booles, L.M. Kidd, R. M Hardy, J. W. Williams,
.....................J. I. Kidd, H. W. Smith, J. M. Smith, T. C. Standifer & J.O. Colvin

Past bank presidents were:

Dr. Booles 1890-1908
H. W. Smith 1915-1925
D.M. Atkins 1925
Capt. E. L. Kidd (Acting) Jan - March 1926
F. H. Tarver 1926-1955
J.P. Grahm 1956
Howard H. Smith 1957-1968
William A. Marbury Jr. 1969-?

The information for this site was provided by the Division of Historic Preservation, Louisiana. Without their assistance this page would not have been possible.

Federal Building at Ruston

The Federal Building designed in 1906 and completed in 1909 was originally the Ruston Post Office. It was the first building in Ruston of Indiana limestone and today, the Ruston State Bank (another National Historical landmark) is the only other building of this material in the parish.

The original floor plan for the post office had the office of the post master in the southeast corner and adjoining it in the center of the south end was a room for valuable packages. The remainder of the first floor was a large room for assorting the mail. The customer boxes were on the east wall of this room and were accessed by the customers via a narrow lobby extending from the Post Master's office to the north wall. This lobby was entered by the east door from the Vienna Street side. A circular steel stairway extended from the basement to the attic. The basement contained a boiler, heating equipment and storage for coal. The attic was not used.

The building was vacated in 1961 and in 1963 was remodeled into its present form as a federal office building by McInnis Bros. Inc. Contractors, Minden, Louisiana. The renovation created a conference room, a rest room, and three storage rooms in the basement. The first floor was re-partitioned into nine offices with two rest rooms. And the attic, previously unused, had the air-conditioning machinery placed there. The renovation also included lowering the ceiling about three feet.

The information for this site was provided by the Division of Historic Preservation, Louisiana. Without their assistance this page would not have been possible. If you have any other information about this place please email me:

 

 

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