Commercial Building

One of only a few late-nineteenth-century commercial buildings surviving on State Street, this one curves around the corner of Lee Street. Above the rusticated limestone first story rise two brick stories with Romanesque-inspired arched windows. A simple limestone cornice and a brick parapet complete the building. This building has housed numerous businesses in its history and the third story was once the meeting place for the local Masonic lodge. A good example of the decorative use of brick in early-twentieth-century commercial architecture is the two-story brick building (1922) at 709 State. Dark- and light-red bricks are laid in patterns of diamonds, chevrons, and combinations of stretchers and headers. The building is topped by an equally decorative brick parapet with a central arched parapet outlined in concrete.