With the 1856 opening of the new Cook, Sargent and Downey Bank, the Southeast corner of Clinton & Washington Streets became known around Iowa City as Bank Corner – a name that remained in place over the next century. Standing across from the center of state government with its domed capitol, the new Banking House symbolized the city’s prosperity and permanence.
Designed by architect Willett L. Carroll, this three-story building replaced the smaller framed structure and opened in 1856. According to The Daily Evening Reporter – Aug. 12, 1856…
The foundations of the Banking House are laying deep and broad, worthy to support what is destined to be the finest edifice in the interior of Iowa.
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