National Register of Historic Places

Brown, Alex, Building

Baltimore (Independent City), Baltimore County, Maryland
Listed
December 2, 1982
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
82001581

About this property

The Alex. Brown & Sons building is a historic structure located at 135 East Baltimore Street in Baltimore, Maryland. During the 20th century it served as the corporate headquarters for the banking firm Alex. Brown & Sons, the oldest in the United States when it was purchased by Bankers Trust in 1997. The two-story building, completed in 1901 and designed by the partnership of J. Harleston Parker and Douglas H. Thomas. Jr., survived the 1904 Baltimore fire. The building was modified on the Calvert Street side and in the interior by the firm Beecher, Friz, and Gregg in 1905. A thorough historical renovation of the building was completed in 1996 when it was reopened as a traditional retail bank branch. The beautiful stained glass dome, probably the work of Baltimore artist Gustave Baumstark (who studied under both Louis C. Tiffany and John LaFarge) was cleaned and refurbished. The marble columns and the plaster moldings of the great banking hall were restored to their original designs. During the renovation the original teller line was reconstructed. Even such details as the design and placement of the freestanding furniture now in existence in the bank branch were designed to mimic the original furniture. The Alex. Brown & Sons Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. It was reported in May 2021 that the building had been leased for the set of the Disney-FX film pilot The Spook Who Sat by the Door, based on the novel of the same name.

Location

135 E. Baltimore St.
Baltimore (Independent City), Baltimore County, Maryland
39.28966, -76.61224

Categories

COMMERCEARTECONOMICSARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
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.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Continental Trust Company Building
Industrial
0 mi
Mercantile Trust and Deposit Company
Industrial
0 mi
Battle Monument
Early Republic
0.1 mi
Business and Government Historic District
Listed
0.1 mi
Garrett Building
Industrial
0.1 mi

Questions about this property

When was Brown, Alex, Building listed on the National Register?

Brown, Alex, Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 2, 1982.

What type of historic resource is Brown, Alex, Building?

Brown, Alex, Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Brown, Alex, Building?

The period of significance for Brown, Alex, Building is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Brown, Alex, Building?

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