National Register of Historic Places

Best Building

Rock Island, Rock Island County, Illinois
Listed
July 17, 2018
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
100002328

About this property

The Best Building is a historic building located in downtown Rock Island, Illinois, United States. It was built by Louis Best, an industrialist and real estate magnate from Davenport, Iowa in 1908. It was designed by the prominent Davenport architectural firm of Clausen & Clausen in the Renaissance Revival style. The six-story structure is one of the first buildings in the city to be constructed with reinforced concrete. It also had an early form of air-conditioning that utilized a 10-ton ice machine in the basement. The building initially housed the Young & McCombs Department Store, of which Best served as a financier. It is thought that this was the first store outside of Chicago that had a pneumatic tube system for cash transactions. After Young & McCombs the building housed the Brady-Waxenberg Department Store followed by Montgomery Ward. It has subsequently been used as an office building. In 1992 New York artist Richard Haas painted the north elevation of the building with a 60-foot (18 m) tall trompe-l'œil memorial sculpture of local Sauk warrior Black Hawk. The building was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. It was included as a contributing property in the Downtown Rock Island Historic District in 2020.

Location

1701-03 2nd Ave.
Rock Island, Rock Island County, Illinois
41.51124, -90.57574

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Best Building

This page lists Best Building. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with historic sites, battles and Native heritage plotted, and its full story era by era.
The Land
The historic sites and place names around the location, and how this land was settled and used.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks and old features hidden in the landscape.
Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
The old books, county histories and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Points of Interest
The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from first peoples to the present day.
First month just $5.99, then $11.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Best Building report
Or see a real report first

Nearby Historic Sites

Peoples National Bank Building-Fries Building
Industrial
0 mi
Fort Armstrong Hotel
Early Republic
0.2 mi
Sala Apartment Building
Industrial
0.2 mi
Fort Armstrong Theatre
Early Republic
0.2 mi
Potter House
Industrial
0.4 mi

Nearby Battles

Battle of the Rock Island Rapids
1814Early Republic
0.1 mi
Battle of Rock Island 1814
1814Early Republic
0.1 mi

Questions about this property

When was Best Building listed on the National Register?

Best Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 17, 2018.

What type of historic resource is Best Building?

Best Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Best Building?

The period of significance for Best Building is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Best Building?

Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Best Building will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.

More in Rock Island County

Historic places, battles, and census history across Rock Island County.

Explore Rock IslandCounty ›

More historic places in Illinois

Browse all historic places in Illinois.

View Illinoishistoric sites ›

Conflict records

Explore 19,000+ military engagements across American history.

Browse US conflicts ›

Illinois history

Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.

Illinoishistory ›

Research the history near this site

An Aubrey US report for an address near Best Building will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.

Research your locationView a free sample report