Clever Costume of the 1893 First Commercial Bank
For those of you who follow this column closely, you may recall that the Wyandotte Savings Bank was Wyandotte’s first bank, founded in 1871 at the corner of Biddle Ave. and Elm in the building that we now call the Municipal Services Building.
When the First Commercial Bank opened in 1893, it was Wyandotte’s second bank; built one block north of the Wyandotte Savings Bank at the south-east corner of Oak and Biddle.
This building, when completed, was similar to what Richard Longstreth in his excellent book The Buildings of Main Street would refer to as an “enframed block”. Such a building has bays on either side of its principal façade, with features between these bays suggestive of a classical treatment.
“Classical” refers to the temples and civic buildings of Ancient Greece and Rome. You may ask, though, why would a Wyandotte business want to make their building appear like an ancient temple?
The objective in 1893 was to create an impression of solidity or stability, because prior to this time Michigan and the U.S. had been wracked by financial crises and depression. The use of lasting and eternal classical forms that have survived for thousands of year sent the message to customers: “trust us, we are going to be here for a while.”
So applying the temple form, or something like it, made perfect sense.
The classical treatment that is utilized here consists of two large columns of the Ionic order to either side of the main entrance, rising to support a classical entablature with a parapet wall above.
The Ionic order was developed in the Greek colonies of Asia Minor in the 6th century B.C.E. and is characterized by spiral volutes in its capital.
The entablature and cornice above these are also similar to temple architecture and are continued around the building. Above the cornice is a parapet wall. The parapet is common in castles and forts to provide protection from invaders below, but here it is used to make the building appear taller.
Round arched windows are another unique feature of this building. These have origins with ancient Roman civilization, which invented the arch and used this in major engineering works including aqueducts and most memorably on the exterior of the Colosseum.
Despite the use of classical architecture to provide an image of stability, the First Commercial Bank is no more. Pictures from a 1978 photograph show the name, “Beneficial Building,” over the main entrance; and perhaps an earlier business name on the parapet, “Domestic Furniture Bunk and Trundle.” The most important sign on the building in 1978, however, was “this building for sale or lease”.
Why Not Costumes was established in 1981 and today is a nationally recognized wholesaler and manufacturer of quality costumes, and has made their home in the 1893 Commercial Savings Bank.
Some time after 1978, the original windows were replaced by the more modern windows that you see today. These include oriel or bay windows installed at ground level and projecting outwards from the building to provide display space.
It is unfortunate that the original windows were removed and that the handsome round arched window over the Biddle Ave. entrance has been covered with a fabric canopy, for both of these alterations take away from the buildings historic significance and most attractive features.
Why Not Costumes is an appropriate tenant for this building, however, for just as they assemble costumes from many different pieces and these provide a disguise for the people who wear them, this building is assembled from many different architectural pieces (6th Century B.C.E. Greece, Ancient Rome, castles, etc.) and the work that goes on inside is disguised by what appears like a bank building on the outside. We will continue to develop this theme of business and entrepreneurs in Wyandotte next week when we start a multiple week series on the Eberts family and how their legacy in the building of Wyandotte is threatened with being totally erased.
As published in the Downriver Review.